Shadowland
by TheRealQueenB
Summary: The turtles wake up in an unknown town, with no memory of how they got there. Warnings inside, OT4/Turtlecest
1. Chapter 1

**Warnings: Horror, psychological torture, minor character death**

* * *

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

A forest green three-fingered hand twitched.

_Drip. Drip. Drip._

Hazel eyes opened, blinking slowly as to clear the blurriness away. The pounding in his head was the only thing the mutant turtle was aware of for the next few minutes. Very slowly, he registered the cold hard ground beneath him and the annoying dripping sound right next to his face.

With much effort Leonardo Hamato sat up and rubbed the back of his head, feeling a bump.

_They were on patrol. It was a clear night, boring even. They were heading home early. Leo couldn't remember ever reaching the sewers. _

What happened?

"Raph? Mikey? Donnie?" The leader cleared his throat when he felt how dry it was and tried calling again. No one answered. Gathering all his strength Leo stood up leaning against the wall. Aside from the bump on his head he was uninjured.

The room he was in was dark, safe for a weak light above a metal door. There was a huge boiler and it smelled like gasoline. Aside from a few cobwebs in the corners the room was empty otherwise.

Leo took a few minutes gathering his thoughts before determination hardened his features. His weapons and belt were gone, the only thing he still had was his mask. He needed to find his brothers and find out what happened.

A little stronger on his legs he finally made his way to the rusty door, carefully opening it. He was a little surprised at how easy and how silent it swung open. Stealth had always been his strength, so he made no sound as he entered the dark hallway.

The floor was a dark green linoleum, the walls a faded yellow. Some posters and drawings were still hanging, or scattered on the ground. The only light was coming from the moonlight through the windows.

Sticking to the shadows, Leo made his way along the hall. He found lockers against the walls, several doors leading to what looked like classrooms. A school.

The turtle took a quiet deep breath and closed his eyes for a few seconds, trying if he could sense anyone near him. Nothing. Leo looked into a few more classrooms, hoping he would find a hint to where exactly he was. Aside from more kids drawings and wall decorations, and some dusty furniture everything was empty.

In what seemed to have been a chemistry classroom he found something scribbled on the blackboard. His eyes narrowed when he read it.

_Teacher's pet._

A coincidence. He was at an abandoned school, after all. If he found out his brothers were playing a prank on him he'd make their lives hell. Didn't they know how dangerous actions like this could be?

Leo would be quick to deny it, but he jumped a little when lighting suddenly illuminated the room for a second. Only shortly after thunder sounded. When did it start to rain?

The leader shook his head and turned to leave the room, when something caught his eye. The far right corner... there was a shadow. But... it should be illuminated by the moonlight. It was pitch black. Slowly Leo made his way towards it, grabbing for a dusty broken beaker on one of the tables as a weapon.

There was movement in that corner, he was sure of it. The darkness seemed to seep outwards like tendrils.

"Leonardo..." Hazel eyes narrowed at the sound. It was a mere whisper, but now he recognized a mouth. It seemed human, with blindingly white teeth.

"Who are you? What do you want? Where are my brothers?" He demanded to know stopping his approach a good distance away. The mouth stretched into an uncomfortably wide grin.

"Leonardo..." It whispered again before vanishing, along with the twirling darkness. Leo couldn't suppress a shudder when a sudden cool breeze whizzed past him. At least now he new there was something, and it could talk. And it knew his name.

Leo sped up now, quickly searching more rooms, along with the teachers lounge, but there were no more messages or pitch black corners. And no sight of his brothers.

The storm outside was down to a drizzle when Leo opened the main entrance. Again he was surprised at how easy it was to open. Why did the thing just let him leave?

Aware of his surroundings, he stepped out in the open. A single streetlight was on, but there was no sign of living beings. The buildings close by were rundown, just like the school, with broken windows and faded colors. The playground across the street was rusty and falling apart already. The swing-set creaked eerily as it swung in the wind.

He wanted to try shouting for his brothers again, but deemed it too dangerous. Who knew what kind of other creatures where running around? Leo didn't sense anything close, but he hadn't sensed the shadow being either. It was an unsettling situation.

It would take ages to search the whole block, heck, even the whole town if necessary. Deciding to get a better point of view, Leo climbed the three-story building, pausing to peer inside a window. The classroom was still as empty as predicted. No shadowy figure lurking, waiting to jump at him.

Carefully he continued his climb until he reached the roof, warily eyeing his surroundings. The town was smaller than anticipated. There were only a few buildings as tall or a little taller than the school he was standing on. In the darkness he couldn't recognize them, but he figured one would be a hospital. The other could be a mall.

Unlike New York City, this town was a little lighter building-wise. Instead of tight packed high houses, there were a few scattered, like the suburbs. Closer to the mall the buildings grew closer together, shops probably.

Anyways, something on his left side caught his attention. There were only a few houses, all of them rundown. Leo expected it was the same for every building here. Nobody seemed to live here anymore.

While everything was dark except for the single streetlight below, a quite colorful show of lights happened at the far side. Squinting his eyes, Leo recognized tons of balloons, and red and white striped tents. A carnival of some sorts?

It could be a trap. His brothers could be there. Whatever it was, it was the only lead he had. A shiver ran over him and with a swift movement he turned around to face the shadow again. It didn't do anything... just levitated there. As if it was watching him. Figuring he wouldn't get an answer, and since it wasn't attacking, Leo pretended to ignore it and jumped off the building soundlessly.

He spared a last glance to the school, forcing himself to keep a level head. No matter how much this whole situation freaked him out. His brothers were who-knows-where and they had no idea how to get home.

The only thing he could do was to follow his lead; the carnival.

It wasn't hard finding it. Still Leo took his time as he followed the dirtied streets. The houses – more like cabins now really – were rundown. The windows were blocked by wooden boards, there was mold on the walls and the gardens looked like they were in desperate need of professional help.

There was no sound. He left the creaking playground far behind him, the light drizzle wasn't enough to make much of a sound. Leo himself was as silent as possible as not to alert any possible enemies. There was this constant feeling of being watched, but whenever he turned around there was nothing.

He got closer to the carnival now. The entrance was illuminated by colored spotlights, the sign's colors sun-bleached. The drizzle was getting a little heavier, the wind picking up and making Leo shiver from the cold as he slowly stepped closer. The ground was surrounded by a high fence, clothed in the same red and white striped fabric like the tents, though it looked more gray than anything. Another rush of wind made the fabric flatter against the wooden fence.

Leo would deny it any other day, but he jumped a little when he picked up a whimpering sound. Composing himself he entered the carnival grounds, listening for more whimpers. He followed the sobbing.

"N-No... P-please..." Hazel eyes widened. He'd know that voice anywhere.

"Mikey!" he gasped, running faster now to from where the whimpering was coming.

"Not again! Please!" Behind a rather large tent he found his baby brother curled up impossibly small. His whole body was a quivering mess, eyes tightly closed. He was wet from the rain and crying hard. Throwing all caution out the wind he rushed towards him, touching his shoulder.

"Mikey, it's okay, I'm here..." His heart leaped when Mikey jerked away from him with a yelp, curling up more.

"P-Please! No more!"

"Baby, it's me, L-"

"You're not Leo! You're not!" Mikey had his face buried in his knees, sobbing harder, barely managing to draw breaths in between.

"Look at me, Mikey. It's me..." The sea-green head shook stubbornly. Leo didn't know what to do. He was about to just hug him to calm him down, when footsteps behind him made him twirl around and stand defensively in front of Mikey.

He froze when he saw himself standing there. His clone's face wore a sinister grin that made him really uncomfortable.

"Mikey..." The clone sing-songed, making the smaller turtle whimper again.

"Come out and play..." A dark chuckle had Leo turn around again to see Raph – no, it had to be another clone – approaching. His real brother would never look at them like that. With such hatred in his amber eyes.

From under the tent, an olive hand reached and touched Mikey's shell, making him yelp and crawl away on shaky limbs towards the fence. A Donatello-clone emerged with a dark smirk.

"Don't you love us anymore?"

Mikey's blue eyes were terrified. Never ever in his life did Leo see him in such a state. Without much thinking he picked his little brother up, back against the fence. He didn't know if their clones knew how to fight like them, but if they did he was screwed. Mikey was a shuddering mess as he tried to struggle free of his arms.

"Ssh, stop struggling baby, I'll get us out of here." He reassured him, pressing a quick kiss to the wet forehead.

From his peripheral vision he saw all three clones attack at once, and waiting for the right moment he jumped over them. He didn't hesitate to run towards the exit, not checking to see if they followed. A few times he almost slipped on the wet muddy ground, especially with Mikey's weight in his arms, but he managed to stay upright.

He didn't hear footsteps behind him. When he reached the exit he turned around, gasping when he saw the clones close. They didn't make a sound, they didn't leave footprints. Were they real? It could be they couldn't even harm them...

Mikey struggled to get out of his grip again when he saw them getting closer, but Leo held tight onto him, stepping backwards until he felt the road under his feet again. The clones had slowed down, only walking now instead of running. Gently he lowered Mikey now, but kept firm hands on his shoulders.

"Mikey, calm down." The sky blue eyes were wet and still wide with fear, but when he recognized the warm touch and gaze the floodgates opened.

"Leo! We have to leave! They-"

"They're not real Mikey. They can't hurt us." Mikey jerked away and held up his left wrist.

"They did this to me!" Leo frowned as he grabbed Mikey's hands to examine the bruises that had formed there. It was hard seeing it in the dim glow of the colorful lights, but they were hand shaped. A three-fingered hand.

Leo whipped his head towards the entrance of the carnival, where the clones were standing eerily quiet. But they didn't step over the line. A second later the lights turned completely off and the clones vanished. Mikey gasped and pressed close to Leo, who wrapped his arms protectively around him. A few minutes they stood there, Mikey whimpering and Leo keeping a close eye on their surroundings. Nobody jumped out to attack them.

When the rain got harder, Leo dared to move again, guiding a still shaking Mikey to a porch. There he made him sit on a halfway sturdy wooden bench and knelt in front of him. The younger turtle hiccuped trying to get his breath under control again.

"Baby... look at me." Leo's voice was calm, despite his own heart and thoughts racing. "Deep breaths." he coached, taking deep calming breaths himself and waiting for his baby brother to mimic him.

Mikey took a few breaths before sobbing again, diving forward into Leo's chest again. Out of instinct Leo hugged him close, cradling the back of his head and gently rocking him. He waited patiently for Mikey to calm down. When the sobbing finally stopped, Leo sat on the bench himself with Mikey on his lap. That way he could keep an eye on the road while he talked to his distressed brother.

"It's really you..." Mikey whispered, sniffing.

"Of course it's me, baby." He cupped the freckled cheek and nuzzled his beak. "Are you okay?"

Mikey sniffed again and wiped his eyes.

"I think so..."

"What happened?" Leo asked when Michelangelo didn't elaborate, wrinkling his beak with worry as he watched the dark bruising on the sea-green skin of his wrists.

Mikey lowered his gaze and leaned his head against Leo's strong shoulder, taking a deep breath.

"I... I woke up in the middle of that carnival." He started. "It was raining and I was cold, I think that's what woke me up." As if on cue he shivered again, prompting Leo to rub his arms in an attempt to warm him up more. It made sense, while Leo has been inside the school there was this storm. He tightened his hold, not liking how his baby brother had been exposed to the weather like this.

"Go on."

"I called for you guys, but there was no answer. So I got up and started looking for you. The town looked so dark and scary, I didn't want to leave the carnival at first. I went into one of the tents... but..." Mikey tensed, only slowly relaxing under Leo's gently touches.

"There was Raph. I thought it was him. I was so glad and ran up to him, and he hugged me tight. It was weird..." he took a deep breath. "Cause Raph and Donnie usually are cool to the touch, you know? And Raph was warm. Like, really warm. I tried pulling away, but his grip was strong and suddenly he started biting my neck."

Mikey pulled back to show him a few bite marks on the right side of his neck. "He was too strong, I couldn't get free until I kicked his shin. I turned and ran as fast as I could, right into Donnie. He held me, asking what was wrong and I was so relieved! B-But then he grabbed my tail so hard it hurt and my wrist..." he showed his wrist again. "And kept saying I should show them how much I loved them. I... I was so scared, Leo. Then your clone showed up. I tried to run and hide, but they always found me..."

"Baby... did they..." Mikey let out another sob, but shook his head.

"N-No. They almost did, but I got away. And then you showed up. I thought... you were the clone." Leo sighed and hugged him close again.

"I'm really me, Mikey. Don't worry, I won't let them close to you again."

They sat in silence for a while, until Leo noticed the rain stopping.

"Mikey, are you okay to move? We need to find Donnie and Raph. The real ones." Michelangelo rubbed his eyes and nodded, getting up from Leo's safe embrace but grabbing his hand. Leo squeezed it with a smile and led him down the porch.

"Where do we go?" Mikey asked as he stayed close to his big brother, warily looking around. Leo took his time to think before he started to walk the road leading closer to the center of the town.

"When I left the school grounds I woke up in, the streetlamp there went out. And when we left the carnival the lights went out too. I'd say we keep an eye open for any more glowing streetlights... It's the best bet we have."

Mikey nodded, uneasily looking all around in case there was someone lurking in the shadows.

Leo bit his lip in thought. At least he found Mikey now. If the youngest had been attacked like that, what happened to their other brothers? Were they in similar danger? And why did _he_ get away so easily?

They walked in silence for a while, the only sound coming from Mike's chattering teeth. Leo squeezed his hand reassuringly. He himself was feeling pretty cold too, but he knew Mikey had been exposed to the cold rain and wind way longer. They needed to warm up pretty soon.

"There!" Leo blinked and his eyes followed to where Mikey's finger was pointing. And he was right, there was a light burning. It looked like a police station. As if on cue they heard a familiar roaring sound.

**_xxxxx_**

An emerald turtle began to wake up. His amber eyes widened when his vision cleared on bars. Raphael sat up quickly and almost fell back down when a spell of dizziness hit him.

"Argh... what the shell..." The hothead squeezed his eyes shut until the vertigo passed before he tried standing up. His arms felt sore as he used the bars to hold himself up.

He was in a holding cell. Right and left next to him were two more cells. It was dark, but he could make out a desk with a computer at the far wall, a star on the front, a single desk lamp was on. Looked like some old western police station. There was a small kitchenette with an ancient coffee maker to the right and a worn leather sofa, next to a glass door leading outside. On the left was a wooden door, probably leading to a bathroom.

"Hello? Leo? Don? Mike?" No response. There was dust and dirt all around and it looked like no one had been around for a long while. How did he get here? All he remembered was patrol... they were racing each other home, and then nothing.

"Raphael..." Raph cursed when he jumped so hard his head throbbed viciously. He glared at a especially dark corner where a mouth had formed.

"Are you responsible for this?! What did you do to my brothers?! Stop fucking grinning and give me some answers!"

When the shadow only giggled Raph reached for his sais only to realize they weren't there. He shook at the bars like a maniac, trying to break them by sheer force.

"Ya fucking asshole! Where are my brothers?!"

"You killed them. That's why you're here." Raph's grip went slack for a moment before he caught himself again.

"I didn't kill them!"

"Yes you did... Your temper got the best of you. You snapped Leonardo's neck, and broke all of Donatello's limbs to watch him starve. You let Michelangelo choke on your fist." Laughter faded out along with the shadow.

"What...?! Come back! Shit, I didn't kill anybody!" A chill ran over him, but he ignored it as he kept trying to break free. It got hard to breath suddenly and he fell to his knees. It couldn't be true, could it? He would never hurt his brothers, let alone kill them. This thing was trying to mess with him for sure. It wasn't the first time one of them was kidnapped and fed with false information to throw them off. But those creatures always underestimated their bond.

With new vigor he shook the bars again, roaring loudly. He needed to get out and find his brothers.

"Raph!" The hothead stopped and looked up quickly, shoulders slumping in relief when he saw Leo and Mikey on the other side of the glass door. Of course they were alright, what was he thinking?!

The leader hurried inside and grabbed Raph's hands through the bars, their baby brother close behind him.

"Are you okay?"

"Yeah, just one shelluva headache. Woke up a few minutes ago and had a one-sided argument with a shadow..."

"A shadow? You saw it too?"

"Stupid thing tried telling me I killed y'all." Leo blinked. The shadow hadn't really talked to him at all. But it had tried to mess with Raph's head. "Just vanished shortly before ya two showed up." Leo nodded, deep in thought. Would the shadow have stopped taunting Raph if he and Mikey hadn't shown up?

"Look, I'm glad ta see ya, but could ya just free me?"

"Heh, sorry Raph." Leo blushed a little and tried the handle, not surprised when it swung open easily. Raph groaned.

"Are ya kidding me?! It wasn't even locked?!" Leo couldn't help but smile at the hothead. He was so glad he was alright. As soon as the larger turtle stepped out of the cell, Leo hugged him tight. It caught Raph off guard, but he hugged back just as tight. One arm lifted, but Mikey didn't join them immediately.

Leo pulled away and looked at their younger brother. The sea-green turtle was hesitating where he stood.

"It's okay Mikey, it's him." Leonardo assured, ignoring Raph's questioning looks. Slowly Mikey stepped closer, putting a shaking hand on Raphael's plastron. The amber eyes widened when he saw the dark bruise on the wrist.

"Who the shell did this to you!? I'm gonna kill them!" Mikey couldn't help but let out a relieved chuckle and buried himself in Raph's chest. Raph blinked in confusion but hugged him tight. "What happened?" He asked finally after pulling back.

"It's a long story..." Leo sighed and rubbed a hand over his eyes. "We still need to find Donnie."

"Then what are we waiting for?" Raph went over to the glass door, eager to leave this prison.

"Wait."

Leo was rummaging through the desk, a triumphant look on his face as he pulled up a map.

"This will make it easier." he stated unfolding it on the desk so the lamp was illuminating it.

Mikey stood next to him, arms crossed as they studied the map. Raph sighed soundlessly before making his way over too. Before, he grabbed a dusty blanket from the sofa and after shaking the dirt from it best he could, he wrapped it over Mikey's quivering shoulders. The sky blue eyes looked up at him as he came to stand half behind him, but Raph was staring at the map. His hand came to rest on Mikey's shoulder though.

"I woke up here." Leo started, pointing at a school. "Mikey here..." There was only empty land on the map. "And then we found you here." Mikey tilted his head.

"Looks like a triangle." He extracted one of his hands to trace the shape. Leo nodded, a hand on his chin.

"But we are four. So it's probably a square." Leo traced the triangle, continuing it to a square. "That means Donnie should be... here."

"A hospital, seriously?"

"Yeah... let's go. I don't want to imagine what he's going through..."

**_xxxxx_**

"This is fascinating..." A certain genius mumbled, eyes wide as he made his way through dark hallways. After waking up Donatello figured out pretty quick that he was in a hospital. The whole building was on emergency power supply, so only the most necessary things were running, along with very much dimmed lights. They were flickering from time to time, not helping the creepy atmosphere.

Donnie took in the dusty interior, the blank papers strewn all around the hallways and how he seemed to be the only one here. For quite a while now he was wandering through the building without finding anything aside from more chaos and dust. He checked every door to not miss anything. Don let out a sigh when he found a broom closet. The cobwebs didn't bother him as he grabbed one of the brooms. Not quite his bo-staff, but at least a weapon. Who knew what he would encounter here?

It just didn't make sense. He remembered their race home, as usual he was head-to-head with Raph for the third place. They were just no match for Mikey's speed or Leo's determination. He remembered hearing something, a whisper, and then nothing. And suddenly he wakes up on a dirty hospital bed.

The beds were old-fashioned and for a moment Donnie thought they went back in time again. But then again, some of the equipment was pretty high-tech, so that didn't add up. The genius had taken a look out the window, frown on his face when there wasn't a single sign of life. The storm had woken him up, he mused. The thunder made him shudder.

Feeling more confident with his weapon, Donnie stepped down the stairs. He needed to get out of here and find his brothers. He tried to stay alert, but with how eerily quiet it was, and how utterly empty the hospital was, he couldn't help but let his mind wander.

"Yeah, of course Donnie. The evil creature that kidnapped you lets you sleep, just to kill you later. When it's in the mood." He shook his head. Talking to himself. Mikey would make fun of him.

"Hello?" He called out loud. It was way too big to search every room. If his brothers were here they could call out to him.

"Yeah, and if the villain is around he's gonna greet me with cookies and milk..." Seriously, he needed to get this under control. But well, there was no one here to judge him. And talking to himself calmed him.

As expected it stayed quiet.

The walk down the staircase was even creepier with how the artificial light illuminated the steps, and brought out the shadows.

"Great ninja you are, Donnie. Afraid of shadows. Maybe-"

"Donnie! Help!" The sudden scream for help startled Don enough that he almost fell down the stairs. It sounded like Leo! "Help!"

It sounded really close... Donatello practically flew down the stairs towards the screams of terror at the bottom. He must be on the basement level of the staircase. The chocolate orbs were fixated on the darkness below as he ran, completely oblivious to the dark levitating figure under the last flight of stairs.

"Leo!" Donnie choked in shock at the sight that greeted him at the bottom of the stairs.

Leo was sitting on the ground, there was blood everywhere. Raph's plastron was cracked open so his heart was visible, still pulsing weakly. Mikey was more writhing on the ground, lips blue and eyes wide as he fought to breathe. A pole through his lungs made it impossible. And Leo himself... his legs were completely gone, blood still pouring out as he tried to keep himself upright.

"Donnie... you have to help us..." The genius had a hard time fighting the nausea that threatened to overtake him. He knelt down next to his brothers and touched them with shaking hands. Their injuries... he couldn't... he didn't know what to do!

Raph's heartbeat got weaker, Leo was bleeding out, Mikey was suffocating. He couldn't save them all! He didn't know how to help any of them!

"Useless." The hiss came from under the stairs, terribly startling the panicking turtle.

"W-Who's there?" He asked in a trembling voice.

"Can't even help his brothers. They're all going to die because you let them." Donnie couldn't help the tears that fell from his eyes.

"I want to help them! But... I don't know how! This is beyond my knowledge!"

"Some genius you are. You're nothing but a failure."

Raph's heart stopped beating.

"The worst ninja."

Mikey stilled, having lost the fight for oxygen.

"A useless medic and scientist."

Leo collapsed to the ground, pale and unmoving. Empty of blood.

"A pathetic excuse for a brother and mate."

Donnie felt his throat close up from the sobs that overtook him. His brothers... they were dead. Just because he couldn't help them. Because he was useless.

"N-No..." He cradled Leo, who was closest to him and wept into his plastron. "It c-can't..."

"You saw it happening. You failed and that's why they're dead now. As dead as you should be."

"No! This can't be real!"

"Foolish turtle. You don't even believe what you see with your own eyes. You're even more-"

"Donnie!" Donatello's head snapped up at the sound of Raph's voice. The body in front of him flickered, there was another hiss from the shadow under the staircase before it vanished, along with the blood and the bodies on the ground.

"R-Raph?" The genius called out, shakily standing up.

"Down there!" Leo's voice. "We're coming Donnie!"

Don's heart thumped hard enough he felt it pulsating in his head. He felt dizzy with relief when all three of his brothers reached the foot of the stairs, unharmed. With tears running from his eyes he threw himself at his brothers, holding on for dear life.

"You're alive! You're okay! You're NOT dead!" He never was so happy to feel the strong grip of his brothers around him.

"Of course we are... what happened, Donnie?" Leo's gentle voice finally brought him out of his daze and with a few deep breaths Donnie wiped his tears away.

"Hallucinations. I saw... I saw you die in the most horrible ways. I couldn't help you..." The image was burnt to his memory forever. He was sure he'd have nightmares for the coming... say, two thousand nights?

Mikey squeezed him hard when he felt he was going to fall apart again, and to be able to hold him close was such a relief it left his legs shaking hard. They all sat down when Donnie felt like collapsing.

"Was there a shadow?" Leo asked, hand stroking gently over the olive head while Raph massaged one of his shoulders from behind and Mikey still clung to him as if life depended on it.

"How did you...?"

"Me and Raph saw it too. Did it talk to you?" Donnie closed his eyes and nodded.

"It called me useless. That I was responsible for your deaths cause I couldn't help you."

Raph's hand squeezed a little harder unintentionally.

"That little... argh. It was trying to convince me that I killed each of you. But Leo and Mikey showed up before I really started believing it."

"You didn't see it happening?" Donnie asked, finally calming down now that he was surrounded by his brothers. He distracted himself by rubbing Mikey's shell through a dirty woolen blanket he wore.

"Shell no. I'd have busted my head against the wall if I did."

"Maybe that's what it wanted..." Leo spoke up now, eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean?" The leader let out a sigh and looked at each of his brothers.

"It knows one of Raph's biggest fears is him hurting us. It thought making him believe he killed us would lead him to suicide." Don blinked and nodded slowly while Raphael grumbled.

"It told me I should be dead because I couldn't save you... It wanted me to kill myself out of guilt..." The gears in the genius' head went into overdrive. "So it tries confronting us with our biggest fears so we would end ourselves?"

"That's exactly what I'm thinking."

"What... what did it tell you?" Donnie looked at Mikey and Leo. The youngster whimpered and snuggled closer to him, prompting the genius to hug him tighter.

"It didn't talk to me at all yet..." Leo put a reassuring hand on Mikey's shoulder. "And Mikey was attacked by clones of us." He traced the bitemarks on the sea-green neck with a wince.

"We would never hurt you, sweetheart!" Donnie blurted with wide eyes, gasping when Leo showed him the bruised wrist.

"I _know_ that..." Mikey whispered. "But it was so... so real. I was scared..."

They all huddled closer again.

"I know. I believed it too for a few seconds..." Donnie admitted, sighing against Mike's head and Leo's plastron.

"Do you think we can defeat it by overcoming those fears?" Leo shrugged, rubbing his eyes.

"I don't know. It doesn't attack when we're together it seems, and I don't want to risk splitting up again. Not when we know how physical it can get."

"Then what do we do? We have no idea where we are." Raph spoke up, warily eyeing the shadowy corners.

"I think the best thing would be to wait for sunrise. Less shadows for it to hide in. And then we try to leave this town. Maybe it's stuck here."

"If it was stuck, how did it get us here?"

"We were all knocked out and kidnapped, I'm not sure if a magic shadow would use such primitive techniques."

"You think it had help?" Leo nodded gravely.

"Probably. We're gonna find out soon. But for now..." He got up stretched his legs before bending down and picking Mikey up, who was starting to fall asleep against his brother. "Let's find a place to rest. We're gonna need all of our strength."


	2. Chapter 2

"We keep watch in pairs. I don't want to risk it showing up when one of us is alone." Leo stood by the window, watching the hard rain splatter against the glass. They had pushed two hospital beds together so they'd have more room. Raph was already sprawled out on one with Mikey on his plastron, while Donnie sat on the second one, studying the map Leo had brought along.

"Fine. I'll do the first watch with Donnie." Leo shook his head as he came over.

"No, you and Mikey will take the second shift." Raph rolled his eyes.

"Fearless, you are more exhausted than I am. And Don is a night owl anyways." Raph started to sit up but stopped dead in his tracks when Mikey stirred and shifted before snuggling closer again. Leo smirked when Raph's eyes narrowed.

"You don't want to wake him up, do you?"

"You planned this..." Raph growled, making Leo chuckle as he sat down next to Don.

"It's better like that. You're right, I'm exhausted. You and Don seem to be in better shape, so it's best if one of you is in each shift." Donnie nodded at Raph to show he was on Leo's page before studying the map closer.

Raph grumbled under his breath before pulling the dusty blanket up a little higher and closed his eyes. The constant quiet chatter between Don and Leo was soothing, just like Mike's solid weight on his plastron. Raph would never admit it, but he was terrified. He almost believed that stupid shadow. How did it know how hard the thought would hit him. He suppressed a shiver and hugged his sleeping brother closer before sleep consumed him.

Leo and Donnie shared a soft smile when they heard Raph's breath even out. As scary as this town was, they were glad they were together. One of them left alone with their fears... no, the image was too horrifying.

"So here you said is a carnival." Donnie whispered, pointing to where Leo found Mikey. The leader nodded.

"Yeah. I forgot to check if there was open field or anything. I didn't think of leaving before we found you and Raph."

"If there are clones of us running around I don't want to go there anyways..." Donnie shook his head with a sigh. "We have no idea where we are, so it doesn't really matter which way we take."

"We also don't know how long we're gonna be on the run. We haven't ate or drank in a while. We're gonna need supplies." Leo pointed at the mall. "There we could find what we need."

"It's gonna be dark inside, malls don't tend to have much windows. We risk meeting the shadow again."

"I know. But I count on it not showing up as long as we're together." Donnie nodded and bit his lip, leaning against Leo.

"What if it becomes more courageous?"

"We're there to snap each other out of it. And those clones of us can't fight like we do. Unless it thinks of something better I'm not too worried."

"Don't jinx it, Leo..."

Leo chuckled softly and nuzzled Donnie's neck. "We're gonna be fine."

"I don't know... It didn't scare you yet. How do you know it won't destroy you?"

"I can handle everything it throws at me, babe. I know you're all safe, there's nothing I'd be more afraid of than losing you."

The kiss that followed was sweet and reassuring and made Donnie feel a ton lighter already.

A small sound from their sleeping brothers made them look up.

"_Show us some love, Michelangelo..." _

"_This is gonna feel so good..." _

"_It's us, you trust us, don't you?"_

_Michelangelo choked on his own spit and coughed as he tried to wake himself up. Everything was hazy, but he recognized a hospital room. How did he get here? He tried moving, to get up, but his body wasn't listening. He couldn't even scream when those horrible clones moved to sit on the bed with him. The Leo-clone was straddling him, he couldn't struggle, couldn't scream, couldn't move..._

"A nightmare. Of course." Donnie moved closer to his baby brother with a sigh and put a hand on his rapidly rising and falling plastron. "Ssh, it's okay Mikey."

It didn't have the desired effect. His brother had moved away from Raph to lay on his shell in his sleep and was struggling weakly, his sweaty head thrashing from side to side.

"Mikey, it's okay. It's just a dream..." Leo coaxed, massaging one of Mikey's clenching hands until he relaxed after a few more minutes. He exchanged looks with Donnie.

"At least he didn't wake up..."

"I hope _we_ don't end up with nightmares..." The genius shuddered. He was sure he would have nightmares. Maybe he should try staying awake instead. He would be just as tired anyways, he'd rather skip the waking up screaming part.

**_xxxxx_**

After few hours Raph stirred and stretched his limbs. When he sat up he noticed Donnie half draped over Leo's legs, fast asleep. Leo was stroking his head gently, a smile on his face.

"We keep watch in pairs." Raph mocked him in a sleep-laced voice. Leo rolled his eyes.

"I didn't want to wake him when he fell asleep. Sides, nothing happened." Raph slid up until his shell hit the headboard and rubbed his face.

"Okay. I'm awake, go to sleep." Leo eyed Mikey for a second, who was still sleeping peacefully. Shaking his head tiredly, the leader lifted Donnie's upper body so he could slide in a laying position. The genius stirred and mumbled a little before snuggling into Leo's side and plastron again, remaining asleep.

"Wake me immediately if something happens..." Leo mumbled before his eyes dropped close.

Raph didn't even answer, just yawned and busied himself with the map. He blinked a few times when the lines blurred into a picture. Was he tired enough to hallucinate? With a frown he watched the lines move until he saw a drawing of himself sitting on Donnie's shell, pulling on his arm and stabbing his sai into the joint... trying to... trying to take the limb off completely. The look of fear on Don's face was knotting his stomach, and his own face of sick satisfaction made him gag.

Suddenly, with another blink, the map was back just as he felt something stir right next to him. With a small cough, Mikey sat up.

"Is it day yet?" he whispered, rubbing his eyes.

"No. Go back to sleep." Raph ordered, folding the map and putting it away. Mikey sniffed a little and moved to sit next to Raph, snuggling into the muscular shoulder.

"I'm thirsty..."

Raph's arm came up to pull Mikey closer and sigh.

"I know, baby, me too. There's no tap water or anything though."

Mikey tried to clear his throat but ended up coughing again, pressing his hand to his mouth to muffle it.

"Shit, you getting sick?"

"Dunno... maybe. My head feels heavy." With that Mikey let his head fall on Raph's shoulder again. The hothead didn't want to wake up his sleeping brothers. He wasn't even sure if there was something they could do for Mikey at the moment.

"C'mon, lay down. Maybe if you get some more sleep you'll be better." Mikey shuddered and shook his head.

"Don't wanna. Nightmares." Raph sighed. Of course. He gently rubbed Mikey's arm and pressed a kiss to his head.

"Fine. Then rest at least. I'll make sure nothing happens to us." Mikey let out another tiny sniffle before giving in and laying down again. He curled up against Raph's side, squeezing his hand with both of his. Raphael pulled the blanket over the sea-green shoulders and patted his shell fondly.

For a while Raph just sat there and stared ahead. He didn't want to look at the map again in case he started hallucinating again. His mind started to wander, but Mikey's slight squeezes of his hand brought him back. He gave a soft smile. It was one of the youngest's habits before falling asleep, he's always clenching his hands when he was close to dreamland.

There was a dark corner next to a flimsy closet, and Raph kept himself busy by glaring at it, daring the shadow creature to show itself. His amber eyes were burning from how hard he was staring, and he jumped a little when he heard mumbling.

He couldn't help but chuckle to himself. Typical Donnie. Talking in his sleep. It was ridiculous. Why would he be afraid of a stupid shadow? His brothers were here with him. They trusted him with their lives, he could never hurt them. _Good luck trying to convince me otherwise_, he thought.

After a while Mikey stirred again and turned around in his sleep, letting out a weak cough against Don's shell. Raph adjusted the blanket before getting up to stretch himself. He wasn't too tired, but he needed to move. The window brought a good view of the dark town.

It was starting to get lighter outside. A light fog had settled on the ground outside, giving it all an even scarier atmosphere. Raph wasn't scared, no. But he didn't want to be outside at the moment, either.

With narrowed eyes he studied the surrounding buildings, not sure if he wanted to see the movement he expected. So far everything was quiet, until...

"Woah..." Raph took a step closer to the glass, squinting his eyes. There was light! One of the lanterns further away just lit up! But... if all of them were here, who was there?

The rising sun made it harder to make out the light from the distance. In turn, it was easier to see the building. It was a three-story house; wooden with a mostly intact roof. Raph was concentrating, but he didn't see any movement.

"Everything okay?" Leo's sleepy voice startled Raph, and he couldn't help but glare at his big brother. The leader was getting up already, rubbing his eyes as he walked over to the window.

The larger turtle put his hands on the window pane, leaning his weight on them. The sun was rising rather quick, he couldn't make out the light anymore. Even though he was focusing, he returned the nuzzle he received from Leo.

"There. A streetlamp went on an hour ago."

"What? Where?" Instantly Leo was wide awake as he squinted his eyes to see where Raph was pointing.

"Do ya think there's someone?"

"Could be... the light was how I found you and Mikey."

"Should we take a look? Could be a trap." Leo shook his head and cleared his throat.

"Our priority is getting supplies and then get the shell out of here... I'm not taking the risk of running into a trap."

Raph was about to reply when another cough sounded from the bed.

"Ah yeah. Mikey's sick. He started coughing a few hours ago." Leo winced and sat down on the bed next to Mikey, gently placing a hand on the sleeping turtle's forehead.

"I hoped this wouldn't happen... but he's been out in the cold and rain for too long."

"Is it bad?" Raph stood at the foot end of the bed, arms crossed. Leo shrugged, moving his hand to Mikey's cheek shortly before withdrawing.

"He doesn't feel too hot. Probably just a cough." The emerald turtle let out a breath and nodded.

"Well, we need water. We're all dried out."

"We hit the mall as soon as possible. We need food too."

"Isn't there a cafeteria or something in this hospital? There could be bottled water."

Leo blinked before smiling. "It's worth a shot. I didn't even think of that." He looked down at his sleeping baby brothers. "But we only go together."

"You wanna wake them up?"

"I'm afraid we don't have another choice. The earlier we get started the earlier we can find a way home."

As if on cue Mikey started coughing again, hard enough to be woken up. Leo seized the chance and pulled him into a sitting position.

"Rise and shine, baby. Time to wake up." Mikey rubbed his beak with a sniff and then his eyes, trying to clear his throat while Raph went to shake Don's shoulders.

"Leo..." Mikey groaned hoarsely at how horrible his voice sounded. "Don't feel so good..." Leo wrapped the blanket around Mikey before helping him stand.

"I know, baby. But we have to find water and food, and I won't leave you behind. Can you manage?" Mike nodded obediently and held be blanket tighter, rewarded when Leo pressed a kiss to his temple.

"Wha?" Raph chuckled at Don's sleepy zombie face as he pulled him to his feet.

"Sorry, babe. We don't have coffee. Gotta wake up on your own today." Donnie smacked his lips and rubbed his eyes. "C'mon, we need to find water."

"Cafeteria... first floor." Donnie mumbled, recalling the sign he came across the day before. "Maybe they have coffee beans. Imma chew them if I have to."

Raph laughed and couldn't help but hug the genius close. No, he could never hurt him.

"Let's go." Leo called from the doorway, next to Mikey.

"Wait." Raph grabbed the second blanket from the bed. "We can use this as a make-shift bag."

"Good idea, Raph." Leo took a deep breath before opening the door. He took a step out, only to pull back immediately after.

"What the...?"

Instead of the dusty abandoned hallway from yesterday, there were people running around. Doctors and nurses, busy with patients. The colors seemed bright and fresh, and it was clean.

Donnie blinked a few times, finally waking up fully.

"Where did they come from?"

"No idea... I didn't even hear anything before." When a nurse passed their door Leo quickly closed it.

"Do you think they can see us?" Mikey asked quietly. "Maybe they're not real..."

"What if they are? They would run away screaming and that's it. Who cares?" Donnie bit his lip in thought at Raph's words.

"They could attack us... it's not like this is a normal town."

Leo sighed. "We need water. If the rest of the town is full of people too we have better chances getting it here."

"The vents are too small to crawl through. I'd say we take the chance and just go out there like we belong." Raph suggested, getting a shake of the head from Don.

"I don't think these are normal people. Who knows how strong they are if they attack us. We'd be screwed. Technically it would be best to hide till there are less of them and try sneaking our way to the cafeteria."

"The shadow is smart..." The three older brothers focused on their youngest when he spoke up after clearing is throat. "It forces us to wait for the night. When it's strongest..."

"Damn. We just have to risk it. I won't wait for the thing to attack us again." Three pairs of eyes watched their leader, waiting for his opinion.

"Together we're too big of a target..." Leo shook his head with another sigh. "But we won't split up. We're gonna try to sneak our way out now. If they attack us we run to the cafeteria and barricade the doors, and take out the ones inside." He waited for his brothers to nod their understanding.

"I'm going first. Raph, you and Mikey follow me. Keep an eye out for potential weapons we could use, and Raph, make sure he's okay." Mikey frowned but didn't protest. It's not like he was on the verge of dying.

"Don, you have that broom, cover our backs. If any of you see anything suspicious, tell me immediately. And if we get separated, we meet in the cafeteria, no matter how. Before night falls."

Mikey muffled a cough into the blanket as Leo touched the doorknob once more.

"Ready?" Raph patted Mikey's shell until he calmed down and nodded at his big brother, while Donnie gripped his make-shift bo tighter, a determined expression on his face.

Leonardo opened the door and slipped out soundlessly, keeping close to the wall. Mikey followed shortly after, eyes roaming over the busy people. Nobody spared them a glance. Leo waited until all of his brothers were behind him before moving again.

Not being fooled by the momentary calm, they stayed quiet and out of the way. Just in case.

Leo led the way, following the signs towards the cafeteria. When they passed a medical storage room, Raph motioned for his leader to stop. There could be weapons inside. Leo gave a short nod and covered their backs as his brothers hurried inside.

There was no one inside and it was dark, but the light flicked on when Don hit the switch.

"Fascinating..." he whispered. "Everything works now."

"Jus' creepy if ya ask me." Raph mumbled as he walked over to the shelves, searching for anything he could use as a weapon. "Ah-hah!" he smirked when he found a few scalpels. He grabbed two and twirled them experimentally. "Not quite what I'm used to but hey, better than nothing." He offered the box of scalpels to Leo, who took one and shrugged.

"See if you find some crutches. I'd be more comfortable with some of those to use."

"Hospitals are so creepy..." Mikey muttered, staying close to Don as the genius walked along the shelves of another aisle. He eyed the equipment with a shudder while his brother seemed like a kid in a candy store.

"Only because this one is scary. Usually they are quite interesting and useful." He picked up an empty white bag from the bottom of the shelf and started throwing things inside.

"For nerds like you maybe." Mikey coughed into the blanket again, eyes watering.

Donnie shot him an annoyed look for the jab, but then smirked. "You _do_ know that you're at my mercy, right?" Mikey watched him warily.

"I don't think this is the right time and place to tease me..."

"Who said I'm teasing you?" Donnie smiled innocently as he grabbed something from a top shelf and put it in the bag before continuing. Mikey blinked and frowned at the box. _Rectal thermometers._

"Donnie!" He whined hoarsely. "This isn't funny! Put it back!"

"What do you have there?" Raph eyed the bag while Leo swung a pair of crutches by the door.

"Just some medical supplies we might need. Gauze and stuff, disinfectants, stethoscope et cetera." He grinned at the glare Mikey sent him, making Raph shake his head. "Maybe we pass a pharmacy or the lab. We could use some painkillers and cold medicine. Medicine in general."

Leo nodded. "If we pass one we go inside. If not we can go find one after we were in the cafeteria."

They left the room again carefully. Still no one paid them any attention. They by-passed an escape plan in case there was a fire and Leo made quick work of extracting it and handing it to Don, who put it in the bag.

It was weird, the way those people didn't even look at them. None of them even lifted their heads...

Raph eyed them suspiciously. He put a hand on Mikey's shoulder when he coughed again. They stopped when Leo put an arm out. Only when Donnie gripped his broom tighter did Raph look up. Some of the doctors and nurses stopped what they were doing and started listening.

Thinking quick, Raph put a hand over Mikey's mouth to silence him, eyes locked on the people.

Mikey tried holding his breath to quell the urge to cough, squeezing his eyes closed when he felt them tear up. Raph squeezed his arm reassuringly with his free hand. The nurses continued their work after a few more seconds of silence, and the doctors soon followed. Only then did Leo dare to move again.

He watched Mikey's struggle to keep quiet and caught Don's and Raph's eyes, giving a hand sign that they had to move faster now, completely silent.

Raphael scooped Mikey up bridal style, who bit his own fist to not cough out loud. The last thing they needed was for him to run out of breath and cough his lungs out right in the middle of potential enemies.

Leo led them further to the staircase. Using their training they jumped, as it was faster. Don grabbed another two floor plans on their way down, so they could have a better picture of the hospital.

Mikey let out a small whimper when the urge to cough became unbearable. Leo clenched his teeth, frantically looking for signs that would lead them to their destination. They were close, on the first floor already.

It was dangerous now. Here were the most people, after all.

_Not now, not now, not now..._ Leo thought as he sped along the walls.

Turtle luck true to form, just then Mikey let out deep coughs, barely able to catch his breath. In slow motion Leo saw the heads snap up and look around, as if searching for the sound. He stopped running when Raph and Donnie did. The coughs stopped when Mikey pressed his beak hard against Raph's shoulder, though Leo could tell how hard it was by the way the sea-green shoulders jerked and quaked.

He stood protectively in front of them with Donnie, glaring at the people. Just like before the nurses went back to normal pretty quick, but one of the doctors was persistent. The man stepped closer to them, squinting his eyes. The turtles didn't dare move, they even held their breaths as best they could.

Raph tried to soothe Mikey by soundlessly patting his shell, heart thumping hard against his chest. He was a turtle of action. He wanted to just punch them all unconscious and get out of here. Staying still and waiting just wasn't his style. However, Leo seemed to think it was better to do just that.

The human figure seemed around fifty years old. He wore glasses and had a strongly crooked nose. And he reeked of sweat, Donnie noted as he glared at him when the man came uncomfortably close. The genius was convinced that he could see them already. They should take him out immediately. His instincts were itching, but he trusted his leader. And Leo was as still as a statue.

"Dr. Monroe, are you okay?" A nurse called from a few steps back. The doctor's eyes narrowed before he chuckled and shook his head.

"Yes, thank you Eliza. I think it's time for a vacation. Hallucinations." He joked, making the nurse, Eliza laugh. They talked some more while walking down the hall.

Only when they reached a corner Leo let his muscles relax before he turned around to make sure his brothers were alright. Mikey kept his face hidden in Raph's shoulder, focusing on controlling his breathing. Raph and Donnie nodded to Leo's unasked question before they hurried up to finally reach the cafeteria.

Fortunately they found it relatively empty. Leo's eyes narrowed in thought. They couldn't barricade the doors, it would draw attention. If those beings reacted to sound, they couldn't stay here. They wouldn't be able to fight them all off. Their best bet was to grab all the bottled water and food they could and leave the hospital. They could find a quieter place that wasn't as dangerous.

He signed the plan to his brothers. Leo was beyond grateful for their training and all the knacks that came with it, including their sign language.

Raph transferred their little brother to Don and followed Leo to the storage room and walk-in cooler. Donnie soundlessly soothed Mikey in his arms by stroking the skin he could reach with his thumb and nuzzling his head, while the younger tried hard to not aggravate his lungs by breathing in too deep.

Donatello watched from the door while their older brothers folded the blanket they brought to a make-shift bag and started shoving plastic bottles of water inside. Raph held up a can of what looked like beans, and Don took a moment to blink before he nodded. Raph and Leo grabbed more cans while Donnie looked around for a can opener. On the kitchen counter a few meters away he spotted one.

Pressing a reassuring kiss to Mikey's forehead, the genius put him on the ground next to their big brothers and sneaked to the open kitchen, aware of the cooks running around. One of them almost ran into him, but Donnie evaded him with a rather graceful move. He forced himself to keep a relieved sigh inside and grabbed the can opener.

Curiously he opened a few of the drawers after making sure no one was close. A box of matches, two pencils and a roll of string made their way into his bag, along with two kitchen knives.

"Hey!" Donnie jumped and almost would've squeaked but caught himself just in time. "Who left the drawers open?! This is a hazard!"

Heart thumping wildly Donnie hurried back to where Mikey was waiting by the door and they watched a mean looking chef slam the drawer closed.

Leo and Raph joined them by the door, their heavy looking make-shift bag between them. Donnie scooped Mikey up again and they made their way to the windows quickly.

They weren't sure if the people could see the bag, but if they haven't seen Don's they chanced it was the same with their food-bag.

Raphael made quick work of the window, opening it and creating their way out. They were used to higher buildings, so jumping down was no problem to them.

They've expected there to be more people. But the streets were as empty as the night before.

"Where is everyone?" Raph hissed lowly.

"No idea... do you think the hospital is the only thing... alive?" Donnie shrugged as he took in the state of the houses.

"Look..." He followed Mikey's line of sight back to the hospital. The window above the one they jumped out of. There was the doctor from before. He stared right down at them for a few seconds before he vanished. As if he's never been there.

"Okay, I'm officially freaked out. What the hell was that?! Are they real? Or what, ghosts?!"

"Calm down, Donnie. I have no idea what's going on here. Let's just get out of this town as quick as possible."

Mikey let out a cough then, holding tight onto Donnie.

"I'm sorry for before... it's just..." he coughed again, though not as hard as before.

"No sweetheart, it's okay. We know you can't help it." Don put him to stand on his own and tilted Mikey's head up. "How are you feeling, by the way?"

"Uh. My nose isn't as stuffy as it was this morning." he said, sniffing. When he didn't elaborate Donnie gave him a look.

"Your throat?" Mikey sighed and shrugged.

"Hurts a little when I cough. Look, I just wanna get home. Can't we save that for when this is all over? It's just a cold, I'll be fine." Donnie examined his eyes critically, as if he hasn't heard him.

"What's next? Do you still wanna hit the mall?" A little caught of guard by Donnie's question Leo blinked.

"Er no. We got enough food and water to last for a while. I don't want to risk it. I think it's best to leave as soon as possible."

"So we're gonna ignore the house with the light?" Raph clarified, arms crossed.

"Raph, it could be a trap."

"It could also be an innocent being that's been sent here too." Donnie looked up from where he was feeling the sides of Mikey's neck.

"What house?"

"A streetlamp went on before you guys woke up. Right next to a house. Maybe there's someone that needs help."

"And what if it really is a trap?"

"What if there's a terrified child? Innocent, didn't do anything wrong and facing its worst fears all alone? We aren't the only ones with bad enough luck to be kidnapped into weird dimensions."

Leo sighed in annoyance and rubbed his forehead before glaring at his immediate younger brother.

"That just doesn't make sense. Why would the shadow bring children here?"

"Shell, I don't know. I'm jus' guessing here, kay? Maybe it's feeding off fear or something."

"Are you playing medium now, Raph? Look, I know you hate running away, but I'm not risking our lives because of some quick idea you had."

Donatello rolled his eyes in a suffering way as he listened to their bickering. They were all stressed, yeah, but this was seriously not the time to fight. He always hated their arguments.

And Mikey too. The younger turtle stepped closer and buried his face in the crook of Donnie's neck, who automatically wrapped an arm around him.

"Make them stop..." he whispered, prompting Donnie to press a kiss to his head.

"Guys." The genius spoke up over their bickering brothers. At least they didn't get physical yet.

"We're all hungry and thirsty. Why don't we find a good place to eat and talk about the next step then?"

Leo shot a glare at Raph, daring him to continue the fight. And by the way Raph's muscles clenched, Donnie could tell it was only a matter of seconds until he did just that.

"Mikey needs rest." He said before the volcano could explode. Literally. Quickly catching on, Mikey let out a pathetic cough and snuggled closer to Donnie, sneaking a puppy-dog look over his shoulder.

Raph glared at both of his younger brothers for a while before let out a breath of annoyance and rubbed both hands over his face.

"Whatever."

Leo was already grabbing for the food-bag, but Raph was faster and hefted it up with a glare. It was met with a cold stare and a snarl. The tension was so thick, and Don was annoyed enough that he wanted to shake both of them until they'd collapse. Not the time, not the place.

"I got this." Mikey whispered hoarsely before letting go of the genius with an eye-roll. He had years of practice, he knew how to distract his brothers.

Leo was their leader, a super ninja, a stealthy fighting machine. But he was also their big brother. And most of all, he was a mother hen.

"Leo..." he croaked as he stepped closer. "C-Can you carry me? I'm so t-tired..." As expected Leo's gaze softened and without sparing Raph another glance, he closed the distance to his baby brother.

"Aw, of course, baby."

"Pushover." Raph grumbled, but there was a teasing undertone now. And the glare Leo sent his way now was more on the playful side.

"I distantly recall you carrying all of Don's lab equipment around because he gave you the puppy-dog eyes."

Raph really tried to glare, but couldn't fight the way the corners of his mouth lifted.

"Little brother powers." Donnie commented dryly when Mikey didn't, and it took them only seconds to chuckle. It was so strange how easily they could switch from mad to normal. And that only because of their special bond.

The youngster's cough brought them back to reality. Mikey wouldn't admit it, but he _did_ feel a little light-headed. And the hand that came up to feel his forehead felt heavenly.

"You're warmer than before." Leo mumbled, face in a frown. "We should've raided the hospital's pharmacy too. Maybe there's another one around."

"We'll take another look at the map while we eat." Donnie suggested and pointed at a few bushes down the road. "Let's go there. I'd rather not have hospital ghosts watch our every move."

Leo nodded and picked Mikey up, who clung to him with a sigh. "Okay let's go."

**_xxxxx_**

"Quit making a fuss, Mikey."

"I can't believe you really took one of those! Stay away!"

"That teaches you not to mess with your doctor."

"I was just teasing!"

"Stop acting like a baby!"

"I would if you'd stop treating me like one!"

Raph and Leo really shouldn't laugh, they knew, but watching Mikey and Donnie argue about a stupid thermometer was such a thing of normality that the relief made them float.

They felt relatively safe in the daylight, despite the eerie silence all around. While they've been eating they were keeping a close eye on the surrounding buildings, but there was no sign of life from either of them. They looked just as abandoned as they did the previous night.

"You know, you're putting up quite a fight. I thought you were tired?" Leo smiled at the glare Mikey sent him, though the youngster's attention was back on Donnie pretty quick when the genius moved.

"He _is_. He's just cranky. Like a baby." He met Mikey's glare with an unimpressed expression. "Come on. Afterwards you can go to sleep."

Michelangelo slumped back on his shell with his head resting on Raph's leg and glared up at the sky. He was too exhausted to put up much more of a fight. His head was pounding, but he wouldn't whine about _that_. When he felt Don move between his legs he closed his eyes.

"Why are ya embarrassed?" Raph teased, stroking the heated cheek. "Not like we haven't seen it before. Heck, we put way bigger things in there almost daily."

"Shut up, Raph..." Mikey grimaced when the cold thin object slid into him. "That's the last thing you've put inside me for a long while." he grumbled, jerking away from Raph's touch and glaring at Don when he hissed at him to hold still.

"Aw, don't be like that." Leo chuckled. "Maybe it's one of Donnie's hidden kinks."

Donatello grinned, playing along. "Well, would be interesting to try at home. You're gonna be a willing patient, hm?" He patted Mikey's thigh with a chuckle, removing the thermometer when it beeped.

"You're jerks. All of you. Stupid meanies. You can go fuck yourselves." Mikey coughed and turned to the side so he could breath easier.

"101.6... We're definitely gonna hit the pharmacy. I'm pretty sure it's gonna go up." Mikey swatted Don's hand away when he tried to put it on his head. The chocolate orbs narrowed. "Maybe they have suppositories. Since Mikey's being so nice and cooperative."

"Donnie..." The sea-green turtle whined, sounding really exhausted now on the verge of falling asleep. "Stop teasing..." Don tried to be stern, but couldn't help a soft smile at the way Mikey leaned into his touch now.

"Go to sleep, sweetheart." As if he'd been waiting for the go-ahead, Mikey's breath evened out.

"He's gonna be okay, isn't he?" Leo asked, sipping from his water.

"I think so. His temperature is running a little high, though. It tends to rise in the evenings, he's gonna need some meds to keep him on his feet. At least until we leave this town and he can rest properly."

Leo nodded, face in a frown. "We can afford to let him sleep for a bit. Then we hit the pharmacy and then we make a run for it. I have a feeling the day passes faster than the night." The hazel eyes studied the sky, judging it to be afternoon already.

Raph eyed the map. "The house I saw is just across the pharmacy." he pointed out.

"Raph..." Leo started, tired of fighting.

"We don't have to go inside. A quick look through the windows, okay? Just to make sure we aren't leaving innocents behind."

"Alright. If it makes you happy." Raph just nodded, satisfied for now with the compromise and leaned back on his hands, watching the streets through the bushes.

"So... do you really have that kink, Donnie-boy?" Raphael finally asked when watching the empty town was too boring. Donatello looked up from the piece of bread he was nibbling on absentmindedly and blushed.

"Uh... no? Of course not. He was teasing me and I wanted to get back at him. I brought a normal thermometer too."

"You're babbling." Leo observed with a halfway-smile, while Raph smirked.

"Shell, you _do_! This is priceless." The emerald turtle laughed, muffling it in his fist.

"Oh shut up, Raph!"

"No seriously. It suits you. I can imagine you in your lab coat, examining every inch of your patient..."

"I swear, Raphael. Shut up or I'm going to make _you_ my first patient when we're back home."

Raph laughed only harder, and even Leo had to bite back a laugh at how embarrassed Donnie was. Only when Mikey started stirring and coughing again they quieted down.

Donnie, still beet red, grabbed his drowsy younger brother and cradled him.

"S'wrong?" Mikey slurred into Don's plastron, still half asleep.

"Nothing, sweetheart. Leo and Raph are just being assholes."


	3. Chapter 3

"Fearless."

Leo jerked awake when Raphael touched his shoulder. When did he fall asleep? He sat up and rubbed his face when he realized they weren't in danger.

Donnie and Mikey were huddled together, both asleep. Blinking a few times to wake himself up more he turned to look at his immediate younger brother. Raph was watching the sky, that was starting to tint.

"The sun's about ta set." Understanding, Leonardo nodded and stretched shortly before crawling over to their sleeping brothers while Raph started to pick up their bottles and food, putting them in the blanket again.

"Donnie. Come on, wake up." Leo slightly shook the olive shoulder, rolling his eyes good-naturedly when Don only mumbled something incoherent and snuggled closer to Mikey, burying his beak in the space between his shoulder and neck.

"He had some sorta nightmare before. Didn't wake up, but he calmed down when I talked ta him." Raph shrugged one shoulder as he watched their brothers.

"That was to be expected. I can't even imagine how horrible it must've been to see what he did."

"I jus' hope that it stays the only thing he saw. I hate to say it, but this all kinda feels too easy." He and Leo exchanged a long serious look.

"It does. But I don't think it's gonna stay that way." With a sigh and a glance at the now pink and orange sky Leo shook Donnie again. "The sun's setting pretty fast." he observed, trying to wake his brother more urgently.

"I noticed. Here, try this." Raph's hand shot out to squeeze Don's tail hard, eliciting a gasp and earning a swat from the now wide awake Donnie.

"Ow! Are you nuts?!" The genius sat up with a surprised glare, jerking Mikey accidentally.

"Sorry, babe. Had to wake ya somehow. It's getting dark." Whatever Donnie was about to say was interrupted a deep cough from his side. The three older brothers winced at the sound.

Don patted his shell until the coughing stopped.

"Sweetheart?" Mikey sniffed hard through his blocked 'nose', groaning when he realized he wasn't getting any air that way. His head was still pounding, so he kept his eyes closed as he drew breaths through his mouth.

"He's burning up..." Leo stated, keeping his hand on his baby brother's forehead when Mikey leaned into it.

"Mikey, are you awake?" A short nod. "Good. Here, hold this under your tongue for me, okay?"

Glassy blue eyes shot open and he turned his head away when Donnie tried to put a thermometer in his mouth.

"No, ew." He complained breathlessly, shifting uncomfortably under his blanket.

Don needed a few seconds to realize what the problem was and chuckled at the looks Raph and Leo sent him.

"It's a different thermometer." At the skeptic expressions he rolled his eyes. "They're color-coded. Give me some credit, will you?"

Mikey curled up against Leo when he coughed again, shivering.

"Come on, baby. Let Donnie take your temperature. It's getting dark, we have to hurry..." Mikey sniffed again, giving his eldest brother an unhappy look.

"We don't have time for this." Raph rolled his eyes. "Just put it in his ass again."

The broken whine turned into another cough when Leo's hands kept him from moving and he heard Donnie shift through the bag he brought and then the uncomfortable feeling at his entrance again. He squirmed at the momentary coldness, relaxing when Raph's cool hand soothed his headache.

He knew he was being difficult. They were in a dangerous situation and he needed to pull himself together. He just felt so miserable with how his back and muscles hurt, how he couldn't stop shivering and how utterly exhausted he felt.

"102.8" Donnie read out loud with a sigh. "Let's hit the pharmacy, I don't want it to get even worse."

"Then what are we waiting for." Raph got up, swinging the food bag over his shoulder. "Ya got him, Fearless?" Leo nodded, scooping Mikey up bridal style after wrapping him up in his blanket. The youngster rested his head in the crook of Leo's neck as they started walking to the direction of the pharmacy.

"I'm sorry..." he croaked miserably, sniffing again before settling for just breathing through his mouth again.

"No, baby. You've got nothing to be sorry about. Just focus on getting better, okay?"

They reached the pharmacy before the sun set completely. It was a sobering sight though.

"I can't believe we haven't thought of this..." Donnie rubbed his temples in annoyance.

The door swung open easily enough, but instead of shelves full of medicines and antibiotics they found nothing but dust and dirt. As if abandoned for a long time now.

"We should've raided the hospital..." Leo let out a soundless breath, so mad at himself.

"It was too dangerous with those ghosts or whatever around anyways."

"Still. Now we don't have any medicine to help Mikey..." The turtle in question didn't move an inch, dozing with his head buried in Leo's neck.

"There's still a chance we find something at the mall..." Donnie suggested carefully. "Or, and that's just a theory, we're too late and it has to do with the dark. Like, at night the hospital was empty too. Maybe during the day the buildings are all filled with life." The genius stood closer to Leo and put the back of his hand against Mike's flushed cheek. "If we wait for sunrise we might get something."

Leo had his lips pressed tightly together. He didn't like the idea of staying another night in this hellhole. On the other hand, they didn't know how long they'd have to live without supplies and Mikey's health was more important.

"Do you think it'll get worse?" Donnie shrugged, eyes fixed on Leo's.

"It's pretty chilly at night. We're probably going to be exposed to the weather for a while until we find a way home. His cough sounds bad enough, it could easily turn into pneumonia. And if his fever doesn't go down on its own... I really don't want to risk it, Leo."

"Alright... Raph, what do you think?" When there was no answer, Leo and Donnie both looked up, eyes searching for their hothead brother. "Raph?"

Leo's heart started pounding harder. Did the shadow take Raphael? Did someone attack him without them noticing? Now that the sun was gone there were enough dark corners and alleys for _something_ to hide in.

"You gotta see this!" Both Don and Leo jumped at Raph's unexpected voice. He was hanging on the wall to a house, using the semi-lose wooden boards as leverage. The streetlamp right in front of it was on, and from the window Raph was hanging by came a dim warm glow.

"You're not supposed to run off on your own!" Leonardo whisper-shouted when they stood under Raph, who rolled his eyes.

"I didn't run off. Now look at this!" The sound Leo made was a messy mix between annoyance and desperation. Donnie held his arms out wordlessly to take over carrying their sleeping brother. As soon as the weight left him, Leo climbed up to where Raphael was and peered inside the window carefully.

"Are they..."

"I told ya. Really wanna leave them alone here?"

In the middle of what appeared to be a bedroom were a few children. Leo judged them to be around six to ten years old, and he counted twelve of them. They sat huddled close together, a few candles around them to lighten the room. None of them have taken notice of the turtles yet.

"Do you think they're real? They could be ghosts too..."

"Shell, Leo. Don't be ridiculous. We weren't even inside that house. And we didn't see any ghosts at night, except for that fucking shadow."

Raphael and Leonardo jumped down to stand by their younger brothers again.

"So what? You throw every ounce of caution out the window and just barge in? Last time I checked we were mutant turtles. I don't think they're gonna react too well." At Donnie's confused face the leader quickly explained what they saw.

"They could be scared of us." The genius supplied, affirming Leo's thoughts. "They'd mistake us for monsters..."

"They're scared children. We'll tell them they're dreaming and help them."

"Just because you have a soft spot for kids we won't walk blindly into what could be a trap."

"Fuck, Fearless! Would ya stop pissing yaself one fucking time? Not everything's a death trap."

"In this creeptown it might as well be."

"We're gonna have to stay the night anyways, and I'd rather be somewhere inside than on the streets. Mikey needs a good place to rest, and I don't think the damp muddy ground is the best solution." As if on cue Mikey coughed deeply, grimacing as the headache flared up again and woke him from his light doze.

"Raph's kinda right... a bed would be good. Preferably with a fireplace close." Don shushed his baby brother when he mumbled something incoherently into the blanket he had pulled up until his eyes.

"Fine, then we go find an _empty_ place."

A sound from the distance cut Raph's retort off before it even started.

"What was that?" he asked instead.

Again the sound filled the night air. It sounded like...

"Wolves?" Donatello whispered.

"This... this is strange. I didn't encounter a single animal yesterday. Not even a bug..."

The howling got closer, making a rather uncomfortable shiver run through each of the turtles. Don felt the urge to run and hide. They really shouldn't be just standing there.

"Shit! Inside now!" Raph hollered taking the lead and barging into the house, making sure his brothers were following him. They've trusted him blindly, sensing the threat and as soon as the door was closed and locked they gathered at a window, watching the street.

First there was nothing. And then, very slowly, a wolf was appearing. He was large, almost as large as the turtles themselves, and had long silver fur that shimmered in the moonlight. The eyes were a vicious shade of yellow, seeming to glow through the dark. The teeth were bared constantly as it snarled, long and sharp intimidating.

It let out a long howl before sniffing the ground. Feeling his blood rush in his ears, Raph crouched with his back against the door, his brothers right next to him. Mikey was nestled between Leo and Donnie, fully awake now.

The window right next to the door brought a good amount of moonlight inside. The turtles had a pretty good view of the illuminated square it created. Expecting it, but still unprepared for it, they tensed when a shadow appeared in the square. The wolf was at the window.

The four terrapins pressed themselves as close to the wall as possible, hoping the angle was good enough they wouldn't be seen. It was silly, as ninjas they could blend into the shadows and be invisible in milliseconds, but none of them liked the shadows here.

It couldn't have been more than two minutes, but it felt like an eternity until the shadow vanished, the paws scraping the molding wood of the outer window pane before they hit the grass. There was no sound, until there was another howl, though it sounded farther away now.

"So much for stuff being too easy..." Raph breathed out, being the first to get up.

"Looks like The Shadow got some new ideas to freak us out..." Donnie mumbled, staying on the ground and thumping the back of his head against the wall. "This would be so much easier if we had our weapons."

Or at least proper substitutes. They'd have to use great force to kill the wolf with a broom and a pair of crutches. And Raph's scalpels wouldn't do much damage with their size.

"Where could we find weapons?" Raph asked, crouching in front of his seated brothers again. Leo shook his head.

"Nowhere. On the map I didn't see a weapon shop anywhere."

"I don't get this..." Three heads turned to focus on Donnie when he spoke up. The genius bit his lip in frustration.

"Outwards this whole town seems to be really old, like, one or two hundred years back maybe. And yet we find really new and high-tech stuff too... It just doesn't make sense."

"What are ya talking about?"

"Back at the hospital, for example. We passed some really weird rooms, one especially for venesection." He ignored the confused gazes of his brothers and continued. "That's a pretty old treatment used back then. Another room held lasers. How... how can they mix up such a neanderthal technique with hi-tech? Or like, this house. It looks almost medieval, it doesn't even have electricity." He pointed at the oil lamps standing around and dusty candle-holders on the walls. "And just across the street is a pretty modern pharmacy with an ATM."

"So what?"

"You don't think we're on earth anymore, do you?" Leo's quiet words sounded really loud in the dark and silent room. Donnie sighed and shrugged again.

"I first thought we were sent back in time or something. But that theory fell when I saw some of the equipment in the hospital. I considered that we were abducted by aliens, too. Has happened before, after all. However, with the things occurring... The Shadow, the hallucinations, I think this is more of a spiritual place."

"Like when we're meditating?" Mikey asked hoarsely, thinking back when they would meditate with their father and whenever they would all reach the astral plane. "But it doesn't feel like it."

No, when he was there he felt light and floaty, even more so than usual. Right now he felt the complete opposite. In the astral plane nothing ever hurt him.

"I know. I haven't figured that out yet. But I'm pretty sure leaving this town won't help us in any way. _If_ we can leave, that is."

"So what do you suggest we do?" Leo clenched his fists. He didn't like this one bit. How was he supposed to keep his family safe like that?

"I have no idea, Leo. It's all just a theory. There's also the chance the way out _is_ to leave the town. I just don't know." Don put his head in his hand and let out a sigh. This was so fucked up. Like a never-ending nightmare.

"Who are you?" All of them jerked at the small voice that came from the doorway. A small girl, around eight years, watched them with a curious expression. The turtles got up, wary. Automatically Raph and Leo stepped in place in front of their mates.

"Do you belong to the shadow monster?"

Leo kept a tense pose while Raph relaxed a little.

"No. We were kidnapped and brought here. You too, right?" The girl tilted her head before nodding.

"Me and my friends woke up here." Leo didn't trust this girl. She was way too calm for a child in this situation. She didn't even comment on their looks. "Are you here to help us?"

"Yes we are." Raph smiled, before glaring at Leo, who had slapped his biceps.

"Raphael!" He hissed, eyes not leaving the girl.

"What?! We're not letting them fend for their own." They spoke in a hushed tone, the girl showing no signs of hearing or caring what they talked about.

"Don't you think her behavior is a little strange?!"

Donatello could already tell this was leading to another argument.

"Leo, she's really pale. Who knows what the shadow made them see? She's probably in shock."

"See, you wanna leave a bunch of innocent scared kids alone? Just cause you're scared yourself?" Leo worked his jaw in frustration, eyeing the child more closely.

She _was_ pale. But that could mean a thousand things. She wore a yellow pajama with little pink unicorns scattered randomly. Her silvery blond hair was disheveled, her dark eyes wide as she watched them quietly. Maybe Don was right? Was it shock?

"I don't like her..." Mikey's croaky voice sounded grave as he watched the child. He had both arms wrapped around one of Don's, clinging to him and shivering. "Something's not right with her."

"She's just a child, Mike." Raph sighed when his baby brother's glassy eyes met his. "Look, they're a tiny group of children. If, and that's a big if, they really attack us, we're way stronger than them. Even with one of us weakened."

"Technically, if they are a trap, they could be way stronger than- Ow!" Don rubbed his shin, where Raph had kicked him to shut him up. "What I was going to say," he hissed, "is that even though it could be a trap, staying is the best solution for us. I don't really wanna go out and face the big bad wolf with a broom as a weapon."

Leo was watching Raph, who seemed really exhausted, not having slept enough. Then his eyes swiveled to Don, whose paleness was showing the fear he was trying to hide. And Mikey, who couldn't stop shivering, with sweat from the fever glistening on his skin, that could get worse every minute they'd be exposed to the cold night air.

"Fine. But we'll keep watch, and as soon as the sun rises we're leaving this house. With or without the kids."

Raph made a face, but nodded. He got what he wanted, at last.

"What's your name?" The emerald turtle asked the girl, who blinked slowly.

"I'm Mia."

"Okay Mia, you can call me Raph. We'd really like to help you. Why don't we go to your friends so we can think of a plan together?" His brothers almost didn't believe this was Raph, their Raphael, speaking. They've never heard him so patient and nice.

"This is scarier than the wolf..." Mikey whispered to Donnie, who nodded, both of them chuckling at the deadpan look Raph sent them over his shoulder. The chuckle set off another round of coughing, and afterwards Mikey rubbed his forehead with an uncomfortable expression.

"I wish we had some cough syrup at least..." Donnie murmured, squeezing Mikey's shoulder in a comforting way.

"We have cough syrup." Mia spoke up, a little livelier than before. "In the bedroom we're staying in is a medicine box. Come!" And with that she started walking towards the stairs, waiting for them halfway up.

Leo's stern gaze didn't falter, his eyes only narrowed more as he stayed behind his little brothers when they followed the girl. The feeling that this was a trap got stronger. It could've been his paranoia too, but what other option did they have?

Upstairs there was a long hallway, eerily illuminated by the moonlight that shone through a large window at the end. A few open doors lined left and right. As they passed them, Leo recognized more bedrooms and a bathroom. From what he could tell, this could've been an orphanage back then.

"My friends, these turtles are here to rescue us!" Leo looked up from where he'd been studying a closed door to see Mia skip into a dimly lit room.

Raph stood by the doorway, waiting for him, while Don led Mikey inside. Some childlike voices could be heard, some of them in awe as they watched them. One or two seemed a little wary, but they were just kids after all. What other choice did they have than to take every help that presented itself?

There was a short round of greetings, and Leo didn't even bother to learn any of the names. He wasn't happy with this and he wouldn't pretend to be. He rather concentrated on his two youngest brothers while Raph played big hero for a bunch of potential killer children.

Donnie made Mikey lay down on the queen-sized bed, whispering softly to him with a smile.

"Can you show me the medicine box?" Leo asked Mia curtly, and the girl obediently walked over to an old dresser. Underneath was a beige box, looking rather new in comparison to the rest of the house.

At the expectant look from the child he cleared his throat and picked up the box. "Thank you."

That seemed to please her as she gave him a wide grin. "You're welcome!" Deciding he didn't want to linger, he quickly turned and stepped over to the bed.

He put the box next to where Don sat on the edge and patted Mikey's head affectionately while their genius rummaged through the box.

"That's exactly what I meant..." he mumbled with a small huff. "It's not even expired yet." Donnie pushed aside more gauze and band-aids to retrieve a package, squinting his eyes to read what's written on it in the dim light. Without looking up from it he rummaged through his own stolen medicine bag and pulled out the box of matches he'd picked up in the hospital's kitchen. "Can you light the fireplace, Leo?"

Glad he could do something useful, the leader grabbed the offered matches and busied himself with trying to get the fire started.

When he got back to the bed, the fire was crackling and warming the whole room. The children were keeping to themselves, getting comfortable on the carpet in front of the fireplace. They were settling down for sleep, apparently. Whatever Raph had said to them, it had calmed them enough to try and sleep in this creepy environment.

"Found something useful?" He asked, standing on the side of the bed with his arms crossed.

"Mhm. Cough syrup and some pain relievers. They should help with the fever too. Never heard of the brand, but that's what it says. How are the children?"

"They're not as scared as I thought. The Shadow only showed up once and warned them to never leave the house. Nothing came to attack them. Still think it's a trap, oh fearless leader?" Leo rolled his eyes and brought over a bottle of water from their stash, handing it to Mikey so he would drink.

"I'm not convinced yet. Maybe if we get through the night without an incident."

"Tch. Your nickname doesn't fit ya anymore, Fearless." Leo let out a suffering sigh, deciding to just ignore his immediate younger brother for the time-being as he took the water back.

"What's wrong?" He asked Donnie instead, who still held the little brown bottle in his hands, making no move to pour a cap full for Mikey.

The chocolate eyes flickered to Mikey briefly before settling on Leo. Michelangelo seemed to be dozing off already, gently breathing through his mouth, hands twitching ever so slightly where they held the blanket.

"It's too easy..." Donnie finally answered quietly, looking down at the bottle. "What if it's poisoned? Or the pills... what if they're drugs? The bad kind."

"Damn, Leo's paranoia is contagious..." Raph rubbed a hand over his own head, but had his face in a concerned frown. "It's a med kit, why would someone put poison in it?"

"I don't know, Raph. Why would someone kidnap four mutated turtles and a bunch of kids to some ghost town?" The sarcastic tone earned him a deadpan look from Raph, while Leo seemed deep in thought.

"The food and water was kinda easy to get too. We didn't even consider it to be poisoned." He rolled his shoulders uneasily. "And none of us is dead yet..." Leonardo trailed off, eyeing the bottle too now. Now that Donnie mentioned it, he was pretty sure he didn't want Mikey to drink it.

"Right. After all, it could really be medicine... It could help Mikey..." Or it could kill him, but he didn't say that.

All three of them exchanged uneasy glances, before Donnie wordlessly put the bottle and pills back into the box, closing it and pushing it under the bed with a sigh.

"He's gonna be fine." Raph tried to assure. "Meds are for weaklings, and Mikey isn't weak."

That brought a smile on both of his brothers' faces while their youngest softly snored, face snuggling into the pillow now. Leo watched him shift for a few seconds before he sat down next to Donnie on the bed.

"Raph, you had the least amount of sleep. Rest now and I'll wake you when it's your turn." This time Raphael didn't argue. He was tired, indeed. With a nod, he lifted the blanket and settled under it, spooning Mikey and getting comfortable.

In the meanwhile, Donnie ripped a piece from their make-shift food bag and poured water over it carefully, using it to wipe the sweat from his little brother's face.

"Those kids are really quiet..." Leo observed, watching them with a frown.

"They're probably exhausted too." Don hummed, wringing out the excess water on the ground and resting the cloth on Mike's forehead before turning to look at Leo.

"That's not what I meant. They didn't even ask for food or water. You'd think children would want something to eat and drink after a whole day of being copped up in a creepy house." Donnie blinked, leaning forwards to watch the little bodies with a frown.

"Maybe they have food here. I mean, there was also a med box. The kitchen could be stocked for all we know."

"Why would The Shadow do that?"

"Maybe it needs the children for something bigger... Like Raph said, they haven't been attacked or anything." Leo had his lips pressed tightly together, looking so unhappy with this situation. Don grabbed his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Stop worrying so much, Leo. It's gonna be fine."

"I wish I had your optimism."

"One of us has to stay optimistic. And since Mikey's out of commission it's my job now." That brought a smile on the leader's face.

**_xxxxx_**

It couldn't have been more than an hour later when one of the children moved. Leo eyed it warily when the boy stepped closer to them.

"I have to pee..." The blue-banded turtle blinked.

"Did you forget where the bathroom is?" Wow, Leo couldn't believe how much he sounded like Raph right now. He totally deserved the jab of Don's elbow.

"I don't wanna go alone... I'm scared." Donnie already moved to get up, but Leo's hand on his arm stopped him.

"You're not going alone." He hissed. He couldn't imagine what he'd do if something happened to the genius.

"The bathroom's just down the hall, Leo. Do you wanna leave Raph and Mikey alone while they sleep?" Donnie rolled his eyes and tugged on his arm, but Leo held tight.

"I'll go with him. You stay with Raph and Mike."

"Okay, fine."

Eyes fixated on the fidgety child, Leonardo rose to his feet soundlessly, taking one of the crutches with him as he followed the boy out the door.

He had a bad feeling. Okay, he's had a bad feeling the whole time they're here, but right at this moment it was way stronger.

The bathroom was rather big. Two sinks and a wide mirror were right next to the door, a bathtub with a shower curtain on the left and on the opposite wall of the sinks was the toilet. The boy lifted the seat and lowered his pajama pants, so Leo turned around to give him some sort of privacy. The mirror he looked into was a little cracked in the corners, but the-

What. The. Shell.

From Leo's angle he could see almost the whole bathroom in the mirror, the toilet included. But, there was no one there. Turning his head, Leo made sure the boy was still standing there. And yet, he wasn't in the mirror.

He watched his own hazel eyes narrow before he turned around completely. _Just don't freak out_.

"It's not nice to watch people pee." The boy's voice was darker than before. Leo was about to reply, when the boy suddenly spun around and attacked him. The turtle stepped aside and swung with the crutch, but the weapon went right through the child.

Leo watched him vanish before he got a kick in the back of his knee, forcing him down. A scratch on his arm when he wasn't fast enough to dodge. The child was vanishing and reappearing so fast Leo couldn't keep up with it. And whenever he managed to hit, it went right through him. How was he supposed to defeat a ghost?!

The door slammed closed just as he thought of running back to his brothers to get them out of here, and his next punch landed right on the mirror. He hissed at the sting of some of the shards, staying still now as he waited for the ghost to attack again.

**_xxxxx_**

Donnie watched his big brother leave with the kid, shaking his head with a smile. Leo was such a worrywart.

The genius brought his attention back to the map and squinted his eyes to see something in the dim light of the fire. The past hour he and Leo had discussed their next plan of action. They would try leaving the town first. If it worked, they'd find a way home from there somehow. Walk to the next city and call Casey or something.

If it wasn't possible, as he feared, they'd have to find another way. Worst case scenario was that they had to fight The Shadow at some point...

A sudden shiver that overcame him made Donnie look up. Something wasn't right. He heard a door slam shut and stood up, looking to the hallway. He was torn between going after Leo, or stay with his other brothers.

"L-Leo?" He tried calling, but the only response he got was a shattering sound.

Muttering a curse, Donnie jumped on the bed and shook Raph hard.

"Raph! Wake up!" Amber eyes opened and blinked, the owner letting out a small groan before he sat up. At seeing the panic on Don's face he woke up fully.

"What's wrong?"

"Leo went to the bathroom with one of the kids. There was a crash, we gotta take a look!"

Raph grabbed Don's shoulders and moved him to the side before jumping to a standing position.

"Stay with Mike." And with that he was out the door.

Donnie just sat there with wide eyes. Were they attacked? What if Leo had been right about the kids? The chocolate orbs moved to the pile of children with dread knotting his stomach, only to see them flickering.

Instead of laying there, they were hanging from the ceiling now for a few short seconds, before the pile appeared again. Panicking, he shook Mikey.

With a cough the younger turtle squirmed.

"Five more minutes..."

"Mikey. Get up!" The urgent tone forced Mike to focus and with great difficulty he managed to sit up. As soon as the genius saw his little brother was awake he practically flew off the bed, frantically grabbing as many water bottles as he could and shoved them into his med bag, swinging it over his shoulder.

"Donnie?" Mikey frowned, not quite understanding what was going on. Donnie grabbed his hands and pulled him to his feet, not even bothering with the blankets.

"No time to explain, baby. We have to leave." But as they turned around, the kids were standing instead of sleeping, and staring at them.

"We don't want you to leave."

Raph had reached the bathroom. The door was locked, and the muscular turtle made short work of kicking it in.

"Leo!" he yelled when he saw his brother on his knees, holding his bleeding biceps.

"Careful, Raph! It's a ghost!"

Raphael looked around and after dodging a kick to the shin he skidded towards Leo.

"C'mon, we gotta get back to Mikey and Donnie." Leo nodded getting to his feet again. They managed leave the bathroom, but the way to the bedroom was blocked by more children. Way more than before...

"What the..."

They couldn't hit them. The punches and kicks went right through them. But the kids were able to hurt them. The sheer numbers of them were making it hard to move at all.

"Donnie! Mikey!"

From the bedroom, they heard Donnie's voice.

"We're okay!" The panic was hard to miss. And they couldn't even see their little brothers. Those kids were herding them away from them.

"Guys, we have to leave this house! Out the window if you have to! We meet on the roof of the pharmacy!"

Leo just hoped leaving the house would save them. Anyways, everything was better than being beaten up by a bunch of ghost kids.

He hated that they were separated now, but they didn't have another choice. They ran down the hall, leading the majority of the attacking kids away. He just had to trust his brothers would manage to get out...


	4. Chapter 4

"We don't want you to leave."

Donnie put an arm out in front of Mikey and stepped back with him, tightening his grip on the strap of the med bag. His gaze stayed fixated on the children, who just stood there, watching them with empty eyes. Slowly, as not to set anything off, Don reached for the broom next to the bed.

He flinched when the children's faces twisted in a hypnotic way and the broom was flung across the room by an invisible force. Mikey's breath hitched, and set off a short round of coughing.

"Donnie! Mikey!"

Leo and Raph. Don and Mikey exchanged looks. They wanted to be with their mates. They _really_ didn't want to be separated again. But they also didn't want them to come inside and be attacked by those monsters.

"We're okay!" They couldn't hear a thing, since the ghosts didn't make any noise, but they figured _something_ was keeping their brothers from entering. It would be such a relief if they could actually _see_ them.

"Guys, we have to leave this house! Out the window if you have to! We meet on the roof of the pharmacy!"

The footsteps running away they could hear. Apparently they were being chased by something. Why didn't the ghosts in here attack? Donnie risked a glance at the window. They'd have to cross the bed to reach it, jump through the glass to save time. They were in the first floor, it would be easy to get down unharmed, despite Mikey's sickness.

And yet, Don hesitated. He wanted to go first, to take the shards when they had to break through the window and possibly help Mikey with the landing. But there was the danger of the ghosts attacking right then, and his baby brother could be stuck with them. Alone.

"Sweetheart." He whispered, eyes not leaving the ghosts. "I'm going to give you the blanket now. Use it to shield you from the shards. You're going first, I'll be right behind you."

"What about the wolf?"

"We have to be quick. The pharmacy is just across the street. Maybe it can't jump that high or climb." Mikey's pale face didn't look convinced. "Are you up to climbing?"

Michelangelo hesitated for a moment before nodding. His muscles quivered from the effort to stand alone, but he knew he had to pull himself together now. He couldn't leave all the work to Donnie.

He watched as the genius grabbed the blanket from the bed, pulling it off and handing it to him. But as soon as he tried to grab it from him, the children's faces twisted again and suddenly the floor was gone.

A hoarse yelp escaped him and he was vaguely aware of Donnie grabbing him protectively. The fall ended in a crash to stone ground. Mikey heard Donnie grunt in pain. As fast as he could, the younger turtle rolled off the genius and knelt next to him.

"Donnie! Are you okay?!"

"Uh..." Donatello sat up and rubbed his aching backside. At least he didn't hit his head. "Yeah. I guess." He looked around. The ceiling was still intact, it was as if it just became intangible to let them fall through. Fortunately the ghosts weren't coming after them... yet.

It seemed they were in the basement of the house. The walls were of dark bricks and cobwebs covered most corners. Don looked around for stairs to lead them back up, but there was nothing. Not even a ladder. There was some sort of boiler, which made no sense in an old house like this, and a fireplace. The boiler was making rumbling noises and warmth radiated from it, and the steam coming from some of the seams was making Donnie feel really uneasy. A single light bulb illuminated the otherwise dark room.

"We have to get out of here..." he mumbled, trying to get up and hissing when he put weight on his left ankle. "Damn!" He must've twisted it when they landed. Great, just what they needed right now.

"Is it broken?" Mikey asked worriedly, eyeing the slightly swollen ankle. It didn't _look_ broken, but what did he know about bones? He was sick, for shell's sake.

"No... just twisted. Not even a sprain I think." Donnie grabbed the med bag that was laying right next to him and rummaged for the bandages he put inside back at the hospital. He made quick work of wrapping his ankle up with practiced hands, and Mikey couldn't even express how relieved he was Donnie was well enough to that.

"Are you gonna be alright?" The question was more like a whisper, followed by a weak cough.

"Of course, sweetheart. Are you hurt?"

"No, you cushioned the fall..." Donnie let out a sigh of relief.

"Good. Now let's find a way out of here." Standing was easier now that the ankle was wrapped up, still Mikey stood close to him to offer assistance if needed.

"There's not even an opening in the ceiling..." Mikey muttered, eyeing the whole room. "And that boiler is seriously freaking me out..."

"Yeah... we should hurry up. I'm not sure the sounds it makes are healthy."

"Do you think it's gonna explode?" Donnie thought that over, staring at the boiler.

"I don't really know. In this dimension everything could happen." He took a step away from the hazard, pulling Mikey with him. "If it does I don't wanna be close."

"But there is no way out..."

"We could try climbing up the fireplace. It has to lead outside. Theoretically."

Mikey wasn't too sure if climbing was such a good idea. His aching muscles protested with every movement he made, but he could soldier through it. He was more worried for his brother with a hurt ankle.

"Are you able to?"

"Of course I am. We didn't fall too deep, it shouldn't be that far up." The opening was big enough for them to crawl inside. But the darkness made them hesitate.

"I don't even see the back wall..." Mikey whispered before muffling a cough into his elbow.

Donatello bit his lip and took a step forward, leaning into the fireplace and reaching out. He stretched his arm further... and further... and further. The olive turtle was leaning halfway inside now and there was still no sign of a wall.

"Mikey, I think this is a tunnel..."

"Where could it lead to?"

"Only one way to find out..."

"But... but it's so dark... what if The Shadow appears again?" Donnie looked around the room in thought. He still had the matches, but they wouldn't suffice. And there was also the danger of the fire setting off an explosion. He still didn't trust the boiler. He sighed and sat down under the light bulb, rummaging through the bag.

Mikey settled down next to him, warily eyeing the tunnel before turning to watch Donnie.

"What are you looking for?"

"I don't know... something we can use as a torch. There's no way we step into total darkness. I... I can't see another hallucination." There was a quiver in his voice as his hands gripped the bag tightly. Mikey understood exactly how Donnie was feeling. The Shadow knew exactly how to wreck their minds.

The orange-banded ninja scooted closer to Donnie and wrapped his arms around him, head resting on the olive shoulder. Automatically the arms came up to return the hug.

Mikey melted against him with a sigh. The skin of the genius felt really good on his heated body, despite the chills.

Donnie knew his little brother wasn't doing so well, but right now he couldn't do much for him. They had to get out of this hole and find their mates.

"How are you holding up?" he asked softly, resting his cheek on the warm head. Mikey sniffed a little, relieved that the humid heat down here cleared his airways at least a little.

"I'm okay. Though as soon as this nightmare is over I'm gonna sleep for at least a week." Donnie chuckled and pressed a quick kiss to his forehead.

"Me too, sweetheart, me too." Nobody mentioned that there wasn't a clear way out yet, and they were still separated from their brothers.

Don got back to business after Mikey sat straight again, but it was useless. He only had bandages and water bottles and the utensils he stole from the kitchen. There was nothing he could light up that would burn long enough.

A sound from the tunnel had them both freeze up and stare at the dark hole. It sounded like footsteps.

Donnie zipped up his bag and flung it over his shoulder before taking a few steps back with Mikey.

"Do you think it's Leo and Raph?"

The footsteps came closer. It _were_ two people. They were coming at a slow pace.

"Leo doesn't make sounds..." At least not so loud ones. And especially not in such a dangerous environment.

When emerald and leaf green bodies appeared though, Don's shoulders sagged in relief, already making a move forward. "Thank god..." However, Mikey's hot hand on his arm stopped him. The glassy blue eyes were wide and his grip was weak, but the gesture alone had Donnie cautious.

"Finally we found you. We thought those ghosts got you..." Leo sounded so sincerely relieved as he stepped closer.

"What's wrong?" Raph's face was in a frown when Mikey flinched and moved away from them, pulling Donnie along.

"Mikey?" Don whispered. "What is it?"

"I... I don't think it's Leo and Raph..." Chocolate eyes widened before facing the other turtles again. They had stopped their approach and watched them with worried expressions.

"Sweetheart... I know you had a run-in with clones before... but we..."

Don stopped in his tracks when a hand landed on his shoulder. An unpleasant shiver ran through his body at the heat coming from it. With a frown he looked up at Raph's amber eyes, feeling his heart beat in his throat. That wasn't normal. Raph was cold-blooded. Even with the heat of the boiler, he wouldn't warm up that quick.

"Uh..." he started, brain working over-time to think of something. "C-Can you... you know... prove that you're them?" While he spoke he took a step back, shaking Raphael's arm off. The smirk didn't make him feel butterflies like it usually did.

"Of course." In the blink of an eye the red-banded turtle had Donnie in a lip-lock, tongue aggressively invading the genius' mouth. The olive turtle struggled to break free, the grip on his shoulders becoming strong enough to bruise the more he tried.

Using his years of ninja training he managed to dislodge the muscular clone's arms and send him to the ground. Seeing the Leo clone approaching he grabbed Mike's hand and pulled him towards the tunnel. There was no way he'd be able to fight both clones alone. Especially with a hurt ankle and a brother he had to protect. He felt Mikey shaking and swaying as he dragged him along; he wouldn't be able to help.

"You can't run away from us!" The clones' voices followed them as they ducked inside the fireplace, following the black tunnel blindly.

Mikey coughed as he was pulled along, glad it was so dark so he couldn't see the hallway tilt.

They almost ran into a wall, but fortunately Don had thought far enough to keep his free arm out.

"Shit!"

"What now?!" He heard Donnie fumble around in the bag.

"Somehow they got in here. There has to be a way out. I just need to see..."

There was a rattling sound and a hiss and suddenly a burning match was creating a little bit of light. Footsteps were coming closer again. The sound chilled their bones. Donnie quickly checked their surroundings. They could walk left or right. Some sort of pipe was leading from the left side back to the basement.

"This way." Don decided and threw the match to the ground, thinking it would stop burning. He was totally unprepared for the way the ground behind them lit up, running back to the basement. As if... as if there was gasoline on the ground.

"Oh my god, RUN!" Grabbing Mike's hand again, he started running at full speed towards what he assumed was freedom. Sure enough there was some sort of trapdoor leading outside. Suddenly there was a loud boom behind them, and just as the turtles reached the opening the fire caught up with them.

With a mighty jump they felt the cool night air and hit gravel, with Donnie throwing himself over Mikey to shield him.

They were in an alley, somewhere on the back of the ghost house. With wide eyes Donnie watched it light up from the basement, the ground floor already burning brightly. The fire was spreading upwards quickly, but didn't touch the neighboring houses.

"Donnie... w-what about Leo and Raph...?"

**_xxxxx_**

"Where do those kids come from?!" Raph growled when he and Leo reached the stairs. A huge bunch of the ghost children were coming from the ground floor. They were just walking calmly, but both turtles knew the damage they could deal. The bruises and scratches littering their skin were evidence enough.

"We need a window. There's no way we can get past them." Leo turned around to get back to where the rooms are, but more children piled into the hallway from them. It seemed longer than before. As if the aisle stretched and stretched.

"This is ridiculous!"

"There." Leo stared at the previously closed door. It was the only room where none of the children came out from. Wherever it led to, they'd be safe there. At least the leader hoped so.

He didn't have to tell Raph that they had to fight their way through. Well, more like trying to get through without being beaten and stomped to death. The open doors could work for their advantage.

Using their training, Leonardo and Raphael jumped on top of the open doors on either side of the hallway. That way the ghost children couldn't reach them. The hallway stretched more, but eventually they reached their goal. Leo jumped and balanced on it, waiting for Raph to cross the hallway.

"Wait..." Taking a risk, the emerald turtle jumped a few more doors until he reached the bedroom they've been in before. There was no sight of his brothers, and Raph didn't know if he should be relieved or worried for them. Did they make it out through the window? Or did the children overrun them?

"There not here anymore. I think they got out." Raphael informed his older brother as he landed on the door next to him. The hazel eyes narrowed and nodded once, trying not to freak out. He _knew_ it was a bad idea to split up! He shouldn't have left with that ghost! And if they got out of this alive, Raph would never hear the end of it. But they had other priorities right now.

The children shied away from the door and their faces twisted, making hissing noises when Raph and Leo stood just inside. The turtles pulled the door closed and were drowned in darkness.

"Of course we pick the one room without a single window..."

"This is another hallway."

"Shit Fearless, how do ya know? It's pitch black..." Leo grabbed Raph's hand and pulled him forwards, away from the door. The hothead couldn't see it, but Leo was rolling his eyes.

"Careful, there are stairs leading up. Probably to the attic." The leader explained. Since he was used to the darkness he could make out the different nuances of black, and from upstairs came a tiny sliver of moonlight that made it easier.

"Why are the ghosts not coming up?" Raph asked as he carefully climbed the stairs with Leo.

"I'm sure we'll find out soon enough..."

But as they reached the attic, there was nothing scary jumping at them. A huge circular window let the moonlight in and illuminated the dusty interior. Boxes and chests were littered all around, a dresser and broken mirror, and a bookshelf.

The weird part was that the bookshelf looked pretty new. The cherry wood was practically shining as if polished, and seemed out of place there.

The turtles stepped closer to it, examining the carved in ornaments.

"Look..." Leo pointed at one particular book. While all of the others were pretty colorful, this one was gray and seemed old. Carefully the leader took it from the shelf, reading the cover. "_Shadowland?_" he read out loud with a frown. When he thumbed through the pages there were sketches from the hospital, the city itself, the wolf, along with scribblings.

"Is this a guide for this shithole?" Raph squinted his eyes, trying to decipher the words in the dim lighting.

"Could be... we should definitely-" Leo was interrupted by some sort of earthquake. There was a loud boom accompanying it.

"What the shell!" Raph growled as he yanked Leo to the side when the bookshelf came close to falling over.

"Was that an explosion?!" Leo watched the stairs with wide eyes, worried for the safety of his younger brothers. From below, there was smoke slowly swirling up between the floor boards.

"We have to get out of here!"

The two ninjas ran to the window, the leader keeping a tight grip on the ancient book they've found.

It was getting harder to see with how fast the smoke seeped into the attic, and they could already feel warmth from the ground. Exchanging a look they simply jumped through the glass. They neatly landed on the ground, mindful of the shards.

Behind them the building was burning up to the first floor, the flames already licking up to the roof. It was hard prying their gazes from it.

"Let's find Mikey and Donnie..." Leo was the first to turn away, making his way to the pharmacy. His heart was still thumping hard from the adrenaline, and he wanted to be reunited with their younger brothers as soon as possible.

A weight fell from the leader's shoulders when he and Raph climbed the pharmacy and an olive turtle was waiting for them.

"Donnie!" he sighed in relief, but stopped in his tracks when he found his baby brother missing. "Where's Mikey?"

The genius grimaced and dove into Raph's plastron, wrapping his arms around him.

"Woah, what happened? Babe?"

"He didn't make it. The children got him. They burnt him." Both Raph and Leo felt their hearts stop. No. This couldn't be. Leo was already turning around, about to jump back to the burning house to help him, but some nagging in the back of his mind stopped him. Don sounded... off.

Raphael's arms were hanging uselessly at his sides, eyes wide in shock. In slow motion he moved to wrap his arms around their genius brother. He had no reason to doubt him... why would he lie about it? But why... why was Donnie so calm? A trickle of doubt formed, confirmed when he found the olive skin was hot to the touch.

"Donnie... why are you so hot?"

The arms around him squeezed shortly before a hand grabbed his tail.

"I'm hot for you..."

Raph jerked away, or tried to, and hissed at the way his tail was twisted. Leo came to the rescue, prying the clone away, ignoring the twinge in his heart.

The familiar looking face was twisted to a dark grin.

"Where are our brothers?!" Leo demanded, glaring at the clone. It was cackling loudly.

"Dead. _My_ brothers are taking care of them... You should just give in, there's no way out of here." Raph snarled, on the verge of just attacking, but Leo's arm held him back. They needed answers.

"You're lying."

"Maybe I am. Maybe not. You'll never know."

"Quit the crap and tell us where they are!" The dark eyes were glinting with dangerous amusement.

"Show me some love and you might get information."

"I'll show ya some pain until ya tell us, ya fucking clone!"

The clone hissed before grinning.

"You can't hurt m-" The fake Donnie was interrupted by an emerald blur jumping at him. Raphael had his forearm pressed against the clone's throat hard, keeping him in place with his body weight. The clone tried to free himself, but it was in vain. As soon as he realized he was stuck he stopped struggling to glare at the turtle on top of him.

"That don't hurt?! HUH?!" Raph was so angry. It was his fault they were separated, just because he was so insistent about this horror house. And now this asshole was trying to taunt him. That stupid grin...

"That's what you like, hm? Hurting your mates."

Raph recoiled for a second, but caught himself quickly, punching the damned clone's face. It would be easier if he didn't look like Donnie.

"Shut the fuck up! Where are they?!"

"I bet they're enjoying the rough treatment my brothers are gonna dish out to them. I mean, if that's how you make love to them, they're gonna be ecstatic with-" The clone started choking as Raph wrapped his hands around his throat, squeezing his windpipe hard.

"Raph, stop, we need answers!" The hothead ignored his leader, tears blurring his vision as he crushed the throat, leaving the clone to collapse lifeless. Gasping out a sob he scrambled off the clone and gripped his own head.

Leo knelt next to him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders.

"He... he wouldn't stop talking. He wouldn't have said anything. He... he just wanted to torture me."

"It's okay, Raph... calm down." To be honest, it had been hard watching his brother choke the clone to death. He knew it was just a clone, but still... "We... we have to find the real Donnie. And Mikey..."

The slightly larger turtle nodded and wiped at his eyes, trying to regain his breathing.

"Yeah, you're right."

"R-Raph? Leo?"

The careful voice coming from the ground had them hurrying to the edge. Down on the street were their brothers. Donnie was supporting Mikey, who clung to him as if life depended on it. It had to be the real them. The Donatello-clone was dead, what were the chances there was another one running around?

"Are you okay?!" Leo asked after he and Raph jumped down. The genius seemed wary.

"Please tell me you're the real Leo and Raph..."

"Oh fuck, of course we are..." Raphael would deny it any other day, but he was crying when he hugged his two younger mates close. Nobody would call him out on it.

Donnie relaxed into the hug, enjoying Leo's soothing touch on his carapace as the leader joined the hug from behind them. There was still the danger of the wolf lurking around, but at the moment he didn't care.

When Mikey sagged more against them they broke apart. Raph took the weight from Donnie, holding their baby brother upright.

"His adrenaline is wearing off... We... We need a place to rest. I need to disinfect these scratches," he motioned at the bloody marks on Raph's and Leo's arms and legs from where the ghosts got them, "and I have to re-bandage my ankle... Not to mention how exhausted we all are." The genius sounded so done with everything, so defeated that Leo felt his heart clench. How much more did they have to endure until they could leave this hellhole?

Raphael scooped Mikey up and looked at Leo for their next plan of action. He wouldn't dare make any suggestions anymore with how badly he fucked up already. There was the danger of the wolf, and they probably still had a bunch of nighttime to go through.

Leo was at loss. The encounter with the clone was unsettling enough. He wouldn't have given them any answers, but Leo wished they hadn't killed him. Somehow they would've made him talk.

If it was as easy as he thought; leave the town and everything would be fine; The Shadow would try harder to keep them busy. However, as it was, they had enough spare time. If they skipped a little sleep they would've left already. It _couldn't_ be this easy.

He still had the book from the attic in one hand and looked down on it with a thoughtful face. They barely had any sleep, especially Raph. Don seemed ready to collapse from his probably nerve-wrecking experience and Mikey was barely able to stay awake, with his eyes squeezed close and breath coming out in pants. Their best plan of action would be to find a place to rest, like Donnie said. No one of them was in condition to keep this up for much longer.

"Let's go to the mall." Chances were high that it was abandoned at night, like the rest of the town. If not, they could deal with it then.

Receiving nods from his awake brothers, Leo pulled one of Don's arms over his shoulders to help him keep off some weight of the hurt ankle. He really wanted to know what exactly happened to them, but that had to wait until they were in safety.

The mall was one of the biggest buildings. Not as high as the hospital, only three stories instead of five, but it was way wider. A dried out fountain was in front of the main entrance, surrounded by rotting wooden benches and withering plants. In the moonlight it didn't look too inviting.

However, the distant howling noise didn't leave them much choice. None of them felt up to fight a ghost wolf.

The large glass door was sporadically barricaded by a few long wooden boards and a chain held the chrome handles together. It was a poorly done job, the knot of the chain was easily undone and the turtles had no problems ducking under the boards to get inside after they pushed one side of the double doors open.

The inside wasn't as dark as they expected, the huge skylight in the ceiling was a blessing. Unfortunately it only illuminated the main part of the mall, where the non-working elevators and the non-moving staircases were. There _could_ be another skylight at the far end of the mall, but that would require crossing the whole building.

They were lucky enough that it was as abandoned as expected. Better not push it.

"There." Donnie motioned to a sign near the stairs. For a few seconds they read the sign in silence, aside from a weak cough coming from their youngest brother.

"Wait, do you see that?" Raph nodded his head towards one of a few dozen clothing shops on the left.

"Yeah, what about... oh." Leo blinked. The pharmacy had been empty, but here the stands they could see through the windows were full of clothes. A little dusty, but there.

Donnie kept reading the sign, pointing at one line.

"I think it's because it's one of the main buildings. The hospital was furnished too. There's no pharmacy, but here's a drugstore." He tapped the words with his finger. "They have those herbal all nature meds. It's worth a try."

"Okay, then let's raid a few other stores on our way there. We can build a nest with clothes and maybe we find something to start a fire with." Leo suggested, feeling his spirits finally lightening up. As long as they don't run into any more ghosts for a while things were going to be fine.

Raph shifted Mikey in his arms, the smaller turtle burying his flushed face in the crook of the muscular neck.

"Water, too. We need to cool him down, he's burning like furnace." The hothead pressed his lips to Mike's head when he mumbled something in his fitful sleep.

"I brought a few bottles from our food bag. When we find something else to drink we can use them." Donnie patted his white bag, eyeing the surrounding shops. "Let me re-bandage my ankle first, then I can help carry the stuff."

Leo helped Don sit on the stairs.

"You're going to be okay?" He asked, gently stroking the side of his face, smiling when Donnie rolled his eyes good-naturedly.

"It's just a sprain. I overdid it a little when we ran from the explosion." Donnie couldn't help but chuckle at the way Leo's face fell. He leaned up to press a short reassuring kiss to the corner of his leader's mouth. That was the mother hen he knew and loved. "I'm _fine_. We can exchange stories after we get settled down."

Leo blinked and cleared his throat with a small blush before nodding. He couldn't help but worry. Especially here.

He helped Donnie bandage the ankle tightly, relieved when the genius could walk easier with it.

Despite being exhausted, the chance that things were going to get better gave them new energy. It was easy picking the locks and getting into the shops.

Donnie and Leo layered a few thick articles of clothing over Mikey after Raph insisted he could take the extra weight. At least the shivering got less now.

While his brothers scouted for things they could use, Raphael kept a close eye on them and their surroundings. He didn't trust this peace yet, and he would be damned if he let anything sneak up on them.

An especially hard cough from Mikey brought his attention to the turtle in his arms.

"R-Raphie?" The turtle in question nuzzled the sweaty head, tightening his grip on his trembling brother.

"Yeah baby, I'm here."

"W-Where... no... hospital..." Raphael could tell Mikey wasn't fully awake, and his high temperature was making it hard for him to think. Still it was unsettling to see him in such a state. It's been a while since he's been sick like that.

"We're at the mall, Mikey... Don't worry, we're safe." Raph frowned when Mike's fingers on his shoulder tightened as he coughed again, tears smearing on his shoulder from where Mikey's face rested.

"No... h-hospital..." The youngster coughed out. Raph glanced at his other brothers, making sure they were okay still. They were gathering books and magazines from a bookstore, for building a fire probably.

"Babycakes," Raph soothed after checking none of their mates could hear them. They would never stop teasing him if they heard him use such a nickname for their brother. It was his personal special nickname for Mikey, reserved for when he was sick or after he had a nightmare. "We're okay. We won't go back to the hospital. Relax, you don't have to be scared..."

Mikey let out a whimper before snuggling closer to his muscular brother. His brain felt like it was melting, he needed to tell Raphie, but he couldn't even remember anymore what... He just wanted to sleep...

"Everything okay?" Leo's voice made Raph look up from where he'd been observing Mikey.

"Yeah... he just babbled something, not really awake." Leo bit his lip and tightened his grip on the books and clothes he was carrying.

Don was next to him, holding some magazines, a pot and a large heavy-looking iron bowl and a grid they'd found in the previous store.

"I think we got enough extra stuff for now. Let's find the drugstore and get some meds into him."

The drugstore was further away from the skylight than Leo was comfortable with, but they were rewarded for the risk. The shelves were filled with all sorts of juices and water, normal tea and medicinal teas, band-aids and various creams and salves and candy. Well, the candy wasn't that useful, but there were crackers and power bars too they could eat.

They chose a far corner, hidden behind more shelves, to settle down. They brought enough clothes to make a decent nest, using the large winter coats to bundle their baby brother up snugly.

The iron bowl that could've belonged to a BBQ was filled with two ripped up books and a few magazines, and Donnie used his matches to start a fire. Immediately the turtles felt more comfortable, the warm glow creating a soothing atmosphere.

Leo poured a water bottle into the pot and put it on the fire to boil. Don was browsing through several tea packages and selected a few bags to throw into the water. They would all benefit from a hot drink, after all.

The genius left Leo to tend to the fire and grabbed one of the dishtowels the drugstore sold. He poured some water over it and used it to wipe the sweat from Mikey's face and neck. The cool touch made the youngster open his eyes, glassy, but a little more focused than before.

"Hey sweetheart. How are you feeling?" Donnie asked in a gentle voice. To him it was a blessing that he could concentrate on Mikey. If he didn't keep his mind occupied he'd lose himself in the fear that was still having a tight grip on him.

"Headache... h-hot... and cold..." Donnie hummed in acknowledgment, resting the wet towel on Mikey's forehead. He was trembling under the coats, voice hoarse and his speech was slightly slurred. Donatello could hear the congestion too, and the slight wheeze in his brother's labored breathing. He really wished they were back home where he could take proper care of him.

Donnie pressed his fingers to the pulse-point of Mike's neck; he didn't have the heart to extract the pale arm from the warm cocoon he was bundled in.

He didn't need the thermometer to know the fever was high, though he really wanted to know the actual numbers. However, Mikey could barely breathe as it was, and forcing him to keep his mouth closed for a minute seemed like torture. He'd take care of that after they all had some rest.

The genius grabbed the open water bottle and lifted Mike's head a little, coaxing him to drink some before he allowed him to lay down again.

"Think you can stay awake for a few more minutes, Mikey?" He gently patted his baby brothers cheek, eliciting a small hoarse groan from him.

"Do I... havta?"

"Only a few minutes. You have to drink some tea. It's gonna help you feel better."

Mikey gave a small whine, but nodded shortly and tried to get up without using his arms. Raph appeared behind him, settling down so Michelangelo could lean against him comfortably. Don pressed a small kiss to his forehead before nuzzling Raph's beak, and turned to help Leo with filling the tea in a thermos they found too.

The cap of it was perfect to use as a cup, and to cool it faster Leo even blew on it. Donnie gave a weak smile at that, and they both couldn't suppress a small grin when they heard their hothead mumble sweet nothings into Mikey's ear, thinking no one would understand the words.

After a while Leo touched his lips to the tea in his hands, satisfied that it had cooled down enough to drink. He doubted it would be much of a help, but if it brought at least the fever down a little he'd be happy.

It took some time to coax Mikey into drinking all of it, but after the cup was empty the coughing was easing up already. Raph laid back, arms wrapped tight around their baby burrito.

"Get some rest... I'll wake you both when I can't stay awake anymore." Leo whispered, pushing Donnie to curl up next to their mates and gently rubbing his arms. Raph's eyes closed after a few more seconds.

Leonardo sighed and watched their surroundings for a few more minutes before grabbing for the book he brought from the attic. Maybe he'd finally find a way out of this mess.


	5. Chapter 5

The book was quite interesting. The drawing of the wolf gave Leo a shudder, especially since the scribblings said it was vicious and ruthless, deadly when you moved the wrong way. It was rarely attacking on its own, mostly just trying to herd you to certain directions or well, into trouble.

There was a vague description of the hospital and some other smaller buildings as the police station. There was a prison too on the far side. Apparently the same as the hospital and this mall, full of ghost people during the day that reacted to sound.

He studied the way it was written, the writer seemed to have been in a hurry. The drawings were accurate, but Leo could also see that it was done quickly, lacking some details.

Leonardo was really curious. Who exactly wrote this book? And why did they find it in that orphanage of all places?

Only when he saw the words blur together Leo noticed how tired he was. He's been so caught up in reading he completely forgot the time. It was still pretty dark. The prolonged nights were annoying... but the turtle was glad The Shadow left them alone for the time-being.

On the other hand it was something that irked him. He didn't want to be plagued with horror visions and hallucinations like his brothers. He just didn't understand _why_ he was spared.

Rubbing his eyes he reached out and shook Raph's shoulder, careful not to jostle Mikey too much. The amber eyes opened immediately, alert due to the circumstances.

"Are you up to taking a shift?" Leo asked quietly as he put the book away.

Raph reached up to rub a hand over his face and nodded tiredly. He felt better already after a few hours of sleep.

"Yeah..." Leo carefully lifted Mikey so Raph could scoot out from under him. The youngster shifted a little, but didn't wake up. When he was lowered on the nest again he snuggled close to Donnie with a small mumble. The medicated tea quelled his urge to cough, which they were all grateful for. At least he could get some real rest now.

"Something interesting in the book?" Raphael asked, taking a large gulp from a water bottle. Leo shrugged and laid down on Mikey's other side.

"It just describes the town. But not _why_ things are the way they are, or any way out."

"So it's useless?"

"Not really. We should avoid the jail, it's the same as the hospital. And I guess as long as we stay in this drugstore it stays empty. The ghost people only react to sound. I'm not through with the book... it could be there's some more information at the end."

"You suggest we stay here?"

"For the time-being, yeah. Until Mikey's better and we figure out a plan." Leo yawned. "And we can finally get some real sleep..."

Raph rubbed a hand over his face and gave a humorless laugh.

"Yeah... until the next shit happens." When Leo didn't give an answer, Raph pulled one of the jackets over his leader's shoulders, giving them an affectionate squeeze.

To keep himself awake, he grabbed one of the books Leo and Donnie snagged and thumbed through it.

**_xxxxx_**

_Moonlight illuminated the hospital room. Donnie was standing near the window, facing the single bed. Next to him were Leo and Raph, while Mikey was... strapped to the bed? _

"_This isn't you! Fight it! Fight _him_!"_

_What was his baby brother talking about? Donatello wanted to run to him, to set him free, but his body wouldn't move. Instead, Leo stepped forward and crawled on top of Mikey. The leader had a wicked grin on his face as he shoved a gag into the mouth, not fazed at all by the begging and crying that broke Donnie's heart._

"_We want this... that's why we're here. He's given us permission. Stop fighting it, little brother..."_

_Don felt his stomach turn when Leo roughly grabbed Mike's thighs and lifted his legs, and shoved his length into the unprepared hole. Eliciting muffled screams of pain from their baby brother. He wanted to help him! Why won't his body follow his commands? When he finally moved along with Raph, it wasn't to untie Mikey. Leo moved away, making room for Donnie to settle between the quivering sea-green legs. _

_Donatello wanted to barf at the sight of the bloody and torn sphincter. His uncooperative body grabbed the thighs, roughly digging his nails into them before shoving-_

"NO!"

Before even realizing he was awake, Donatello hurriedly crawled away from their bed pile on shaking limbs. Trying to get as far as possible before he simply broke down, emptying his stomach on the tiled floor. There wasn't much in him anyways, so it was blessedly short, still it left his whole body quivering and weak. The tears wouldn't stop.

When he felt strong arms pull him away from his mess, he collapsed against the hard chest, clinging to his brother as sobs wrecked him.

"Ssh... it's okay... it was just a nightmare..." The rough voice was soothing, just like the hands rubbing his shell to calm him down.

It took Donnie a few minutes to collect himself, but his rational mind was quickly taking over. They were in the drugstore. The fire was still going in the barbecue bowl. It was still dark, though through the glass doors and windows he could see the sun was starting to rise.

The genius took a few deep breaths to calm himself down before sitting upright again. Raph kept his arms around him for reassurance, looking at him with concern.

Leo was in front of him, a warm hand also on his his shell. Worry clouded his tired hazel eyes. Donnie's heart was thumping hard against his ribcage at the sight sight of his oldest brother. He knew it was just a dream, Leo would never hurt any of them like that... but...

"Mikey..." he whimpered, breaking away from his older brothers in favor of getting to his younger one.

Leo and Raph exchanged worried glances, while Donnie let out a relieved sigh when he could see Mikey sitting up on their nest, appearing to be fine.

The youngest also had a worried frown on his face, shivering a little because the jackets he's been covered in had fallen to his waist when he had sat up.

"Donnie... are you okay?" He asked hoarsely, not all that surprised when his genius brother engulfed him in his arms. Mikey wrapped his arms around Donatello, enduring the butterfly kisses to his head. After a few more moments Donnie gave the lither body a tight squeeze, letting out a cleansing breath.

"Yes. Just a dream."

He flinched when Leo touched his shoulder, cursing himself for this reaction when the leader recoiled.

"Sorry Leo... I... The dream... it just..."

Leo sighed and nodded, forcing a small smile.

"It's okay. Do you wanna talk about it?" The genius shook his head hard, still pressing Mikey to his plastron.

"No." There were a few beats of silence before Donnie relaxed again.

It was getting brighter, the artificial lights from the mall turning on on the outside. Inside the drugstore the lights stayed off, though the light that came through the windows was enough to illuminate their little corner.

Don's chocolate eyes skirted the scratches on his older brothers' arms and legs and he let out another sigh before prying himself away from Mikey.

"Let me disinfect those." Raph and Leo didn't say anything, knowing how Donnie got.

Mikey settled down again, curling up on his side so he could watch his brothers while Donatello rummaged through his bag for disinfectant and wipes. He started with Raph's wounds, staying quiet for a while.

Just as predicted, he started talking, feeling secure and comfortable while doing his 'job'.

"We... we encountered your clones last night." Raphael tensed and pressed his lips tightly together.

"Did they hurt you?" Leo asked, busying himself with rearranging the jackets around Mikey.

"No. They just... scared us. Me. I didn't realize it wasn't you at first... only when they touched me."

"We saw your clone..." Leo admitted, noticing the way Raph averted his eyes. "He taunted us. It... it was horrible."

"I killed him." Raph blurted out, not daring to look into Don's eyes as the olive turtle stopped his movements. He was so ashamed. It was a stupid clone, but still. In a sick and twisted way he killed Donatello. And the genius would come to the same conclusion. He would-

"Good."

Put off by the clipped tone, Raph met his gaze. But Donnie wasn't looking at him, he rather finished patching him up, putting a band-aid on one of the deeper scratches.

"Aren't you... mad?"

Don's usually gentle face was twisted with something, but he was sincere when he told Raph "I'm glad you did it.

"The dream I had... I was doing bad stuff and I had no control over my body. I'd rather have my clone dead than see him hurting you guys."

Relief was flooding Raphael's system, and he couldn't help himself when he grabbed Donnie and pressed his lips to the olive ones.

Donatello relaxed into the kiss clinging to his brother for dear life. This town wouldn't kill their love for each other. Never.

Leo had been watching them, a relieved smile now on his face. The past hours had been nerve-wrecking, the things they've been through, it pulled on everything they had. Especially the times of calmness in between. The sense of security only to kill it in a matter of minutes.

He stroked the side of Mikey's face, smiling more when his baby brother snuggled into it.

"You know what's weird?" Donnie's close voice startled him. Raph gave him a smirk as he settled down next to Mikey, pulling him into a sitting position to help him drink another cup of the tea. Meanwhile Donnie started patching Leo up. How long has he been lost in thought?

"What?" Leo asked, not even flinching at the slight burn of the disinfectant.

"There is no clone of Mikey." Leonardo blinked. Yes... that was true. At the carnival it was only their three clones. And while Donnie and Mikey encountered their look-alikes, they only saw Don's.

"We only had two encounters with them. It could be he appears next."

Mikey coughed a little, pushing the cup away.

"If we see him, kill him. Before he can open his mouth." The three older brothers exchanged glances. They all were so protective of Mikey... could they really kill the clone? "Please. I don't want him hurting you."

"It's best if we kill every clone we see. They mean trouble." Donnie agreed, still distracted by his task. He sensed it was a hard topic for his older brothers, so he cleared his throat and changed it.

"Did you find anything useful in that book, Leo?"

"Uh. Yeah. There's much information about this town." The leader told Donnie what he told Raph just a few hours ago.

"And it's all pretty rushed. Hard to decipher at some parts."

Mikey grabbed the book while Leo talked, leaning comfortably against Raph's solid plastron and enjoying the strong hands rubbing his sides and thighs.

"Whoever wrote this was left-handed." The exclamation made the other turtles look at Mikey in confusion.

"How do you know?" Michelangelo blinked, tapping a scribbled page.

"The way the lines are blurred everywhere." He mimicked writing with his left hand. "When I'm writing or drawing with a pencil I always brush over the lines with my hand accidentally. It looks just like this."

"Huh. That doesn't bring us closer to whoever wrote this. Or why he did it."

Leo took the book from Mikey and found the page he stopped the night before.

"The light is better now. I wasn't done reading. Maybe there's more."

"Yeah no. You're gonna sleep some more now. We have to use every bit of rest we get and you only had a few short hours. I'm gonna read that shit."

Leo gave his hothead brother an unhappy expression, but handed the book over. He _was_ tired.

"Here, all done. Go lay down, I'll check Mikey over and then you two can cuddle up and take a nap."

"I'm not tired anymore..." Mikey protested with a frown. He was tired of sleeping. For the first time since getting sick he was feeling a little better.

Donnie rolled his eyes with a smile.

"You're feeling better because you slept soundly. Because of the tea." He raised an eye ridge with an amused expression at the pout of his baby brother. "You just had some more tea. It's gonna make you drowsy soon."

Donatello could tell the fever was still raging through his body by the way his eyes looked. And Mikey was always cranky when he was running a temperature.

"Tch, you know you're not gonna get out of this one, baby." Raph chuckled as he got up and Mikey couldn't hold himself up, giving a small whine when he was forced to lay down again.

Leo rested an arm over Mike's plastron, pressing a kiss to the temple while Donnie took his temperature and examined his throat.

"Doesn't look too good..." Donatello winced at the angry redness inside his baby brother's throat.

Mikey turned his head away to cough. His fever was still persistent, though it was fortunately lower than the past night. As soon as the coughing fit was over Donnie grabbed the heated cheeks again and tilted Mike's head to look into his mouth again.

"Not getting any better?"

Don sighed and pressed his lips to Mikey's forehead shortly before letting go of his face and letting Leo gather their baby brother close, stroking his shell until both their breaths evened out.

Only when he was sure they were both asleep did Donnie speak up again, after he settled down next to Raph, resting his head on the emerald shoulder.

"Not really. It's weird..." With a frown he crossed his arms in front of his chest, eyes moving to their sleeping brothers.

"Weirder than this whole experience?"

Donnie grimaced, but relaxed when Raph kissed his head softly.

"Leo said Mikey was exposed to the rain and cold for quite a while. Could be that made him sick. But considering the timeline... it progressed way too fast. His temperature is too high for a common cold, and it ranges higher than usual in general."

"... You don't think it's a normal sickness?"

Don's face was deeply concentrated.

"I don't know... it's been a while any of us got sick. And suddenly Mikey's down with the flu? Just think about it..." Donnie voiced his string of thoughts slowly, growing more sure the more he talked.

"We wouldn't have taken the break after raiding the hospital if it wasn't for Mikey feeling worse. We would've left the town immediately. Leo would've made us leave when the pharmacy was a bust, but Mike's health made him reconsider. We wouldn't have entered the ghost house either. Well okay, the wolf played a big role in that, but still. It seems... planned, you know? Like... like The Shadow wants to slow us down."

Raph's eyes narrowed as he thought it over. The reminder of the ghost house made a small wave of regret wash over him, but he wouldn't dwell on it. He had to be strong now and keep a clear head.

"But why didn't it make Leo sick? Or me? No offense, but we're the strongest. Wouldn't it be logical to go after us first?"

"Seriously? If you or Leo were sick you would both play it off and soldier on like the stubborn mules you are."

"..." Raph was silent, and the deadpan look on his face was amusing. Donatello felt relieved, letting out a shaky chuckle.

"Since he knows of our fears it probably also knows that Mikey's the youngest and that we're overly protective of him. We wouldn't put him in danger, especially when he's sick."

"It's seriously pissing me off how much this Shadow knows about us... And we still don't know how to get out of here, or how we can fight it."

Donnie nuzzled his beak to Raph's neck, unfolding his arms to squeeze the muscular biceps for comfort.

"Our only chance is the book. Maybe we find something... We just have to keep reading."

Raphael took a cleansing breath and nodded, propping the book up on his knees while his right hand came up to rest on Don's left thigh. Both of them concentrated on the blurred scribblings, hoping to find something useful.

**_xxxxx_**

"_The hospital."_

_The Shadow. A hospital bed. Blood._

"_The hospital."_

_Darkness. Lighting. A pair of glowing eyes._

"_Michelangelo... the hospital..."_

_His brothers. More blood. The picture of a lighthouse._

"_The hospital..."_

_The sound of rushing water. Cries of agony. He couldn't breathe._

"_WAKE UP!"_

With a gasp Mikey shot up from their nest, chest heaving and constricting as a coughing fit left him breathless. Hands were holding him upright, rubbing his shell and arms and neck, hoping to ease the heaves.

Something cold touched his face and neck, someone was wiping the sweat off of him. He let out a small whimper when he realized the aches tormenting his whole body.

His shell was pressed against a plastron then, strong arms holding him close. He blinked a few times, recognizing the drugstore, relieved that it was still light out.

"Ssh... you're okay. Here." Leo's calm voice helped him relax, and after swallowing painfully he accepted the cup that was handed to him.

"We have to make some more tea. The effect isn't that long-lasting, but it helps." Mikey sipped the slightly cooled tea, glad that it quelled his urge to cough again. Slowly he came more to his senses, remembering what woke him up.

"The hospital." He repeated what the voice in his dream had said. The quiet murmurs of his brothers stopped in favor of listening to him. When he didn't elaborate, Donnie put a hand on his cheek.

"We're at the mall, sweetheart."

"No..." Mikey shook his head, swallowing with a grimace again. "We have to go to the hospital."

Donnie tensed. His nightmare. It happened in a hospital room.

"It's too dangerous Mikey. Why would we go back there?"

"I... I don't know. I got this... this weird feeling..."

Raph's cool hand on his forehead was soothing, and Mikey couldn't help but slump more against him.

"Ya got a fever. Bet that feels weird."

"No, it's not that. I think... I think that's our way out."

The three older brothers exchanged glances. Their study of the book had been fruitless so far. There weren't many pages left, and they doubted there anything more useful inside. It was helpful to know where they _shouldn't_ go, but it was useless if they didn't know how to get out.

"Why do you think that, Mikey?" Leo asked softly, gently massaging the sea-green shoulder.

"I had a dream... A voice kept talking about it."

"It could be The Shadow messing with your dreams, trying to lure us into another trap..." Don really didn't want to go back there.

"We already were at the hospital. If The Shadow wanted to keep us there he would've found a way..." Leo mused, the tone of his voice telling of his thoughtfulness.

"This fucking Shadow is sneaky. Wouldn't be the first time it gives us a false sense of security."

"The voice..." Mikey rasped, taking a second to clear his throat, "... It sounded familiar. Like... I just _know_ I can trust it. I've heard it before..."

Donnie bit his lip hard. He had a bad feeling. His stupid nightmare...

"It's not like we have another plan..." Leo stated, putting a calming hand on Don's arm when he saw him shaking.

The genius took a deep breath, forcing his rational mind to take over. They should take the chance. Everything was better than to stay holed up here for who-knows how long.

Seeing Don slowly giving in to the idea, Leo squeezed his arm.

"We're not going immediately. We're taking time to prepare, and wait till Mikey's better."

Raph and Donnie blinked. Oh yeah, they haven't told Leo about Don's theory yet.

"Might as well leave sooner. We don't think it's a normal sickness." Mikey turned his head up to frown at Raph. Leo had a similar expression on his face.

After explaining the theory, Leo's frown deepened.

"This is really... disconcerting."

"You tell me."

"The Shadow also knew about Raph's weakness for children; it knew Raph would want to save them. And Mikey's sickness helped with the decision."

"And when you still persisted we'd stay out of it, the wolf appeared, forcing us inside." Donnie finished the string of thoughts.

"That strengthens the theory that we're in a spiritual place... So fighting and defeating The Shadow is probably the only way out."

"And we're gonna find him at the hospital..." Mikey added, determined to finally get out of this hell.

They used the rest of the short day time to prepare for the night. They ate their fill for strength and gathered everything they could use as weapons.

In the light of their campfire, they sat around their map with Mikey leaning against Donnie, wearing one of the bigger jackets to keep him warm when they were going to leave the mall later.

"If we're right with our theory, the wolf will try to stop us. In the household supply store where we got the pot were heavy iron pans too. Raph, you can use them to fight. If you hit it hard enough on the head it's gonna kill it, or at least knock it unconscious." Raph nodded, happy with his task.

"We're gonna take this route, straight to the hospital. Don't stop, don't look into any windows, don't get distracted." Leo's finger ghosted over the paper of the map where it stopped to tap on the hospital.

"We don't know if the inside is the same as last time we were there. Chances are high that The Shadow altered it to make it harder."

"What if we get separated?" Donnie asked, mouth in a tight line. "And we encounter the clones again...?"

Leo mulled that over, before taking off his mask and tying it around Mikey's biceps. He ignored the questioning glances and took Mikey's mask to tie it around Raph's biceps.

"That way we can tell immediately. Even if they catch on, they won't know who wears whose mask if they try to mimic us."

Understanding, Raph copied Leo and put his mask around Don's biceps and Don did the same to Leo with his purple mask.

"When we see them, we kill them. They don't have any knowledge of fighting the way we do." Donnie nodded in agreement, thinking back to the house.

"It didn't seem they're trying too hard, though. Raph's clone would've been strong enough to hold me down, and both of them should've been fast enough to catch us when the house blew up."

"I don't think Don's clone could've gotten away with the way I was holding him down... but when he squeezed me before grabbing my tail I felt he was stronger that he'd let on."

Leo sighed and shook his head. His tactician brain was already storing that information for later, but right now he had more important things in mind.

"Doesn't matter what their motives are. Our priority is to find The Shadow and defeat it. Maybe we can capture one of them and get them to talk. There has to be a way to defeat this spiritual being."

"Fine. What about Mikey?" Michelangelo opened his mouth to protest, but was cut off by another coughing fit. Yeah, maybe he wasn't up to running around.

"I'm going to carry him." Donnie stated before Leo could say something. "I can keep an eye on him in case he gets worse and you two can concentrate on the mission." Leo let out a puff of air, but nodded.

"Alright. Mikey, you said you had this dream. Do you have any idea where in the hospital The Shadow is?"

Mikey rubbed his beak and blinked.

"Uh... not really. There was this hospital room... and a picture of a lighthouse. But I'm not sure if that's the place. There was rushing water."

"Rushing water in a hospital? Like, a tap running?" Mikey shook his head with closed eyes.

"No, it was more like... I don't know. Stronger. Like a waterfall."

Donnie lifted an eye ridge.

"That doesn't really make any sense... I can't think of anywhere in a hospital that..." The genius trailed off, realization hitting him.

"What?"

"The sewers..."

"Donnie, I scanned everything when I was out looking for you guys. There's no sewer grates or anything..."

"But there were sinks in the hospital. And the orphanage had a normal bathroom too. The water has to go somewhere. There has to be a way down there... and... and I guess it's possible the entrance is at the hospital. Somewhere in the basement I'd say."

The four turtles exchanged looks, all of them determined. It was their first _real_ trace, their chance for freedom, and they wouldn't let it go to waste...


	6. Chapter 6

By the time the turtles were done preparing the sun had set, letting night take over once again.

At least they were well rested and fed, they were ready to take on whatever was going to be thrown at them.

In front of the door that would lead them out to the main part of the mall they paused, glancing at each other.

The plan was to hit the household store to gather an iron pan for Raph to use as trauma weapon and Leo would look for a bigger kitchen knife. It would do more damage than a pair of crutches. As soon as they'd step out of the mall, they'd stop for nothing... aside from the wolf. They probably wouldn't be able to outrun it.

Still wary of their surroundings, the turtles left their drugstore, keeping close to the row of windows and glass doors of the adjoining shops as they made their way towards the main entrance.

It was eerily quiet, aside from the rustling of the jacket Mikey wore and the occasional sniff. He had assured his brothers that he was well enough to walk on his own for now. At least until they left the relative safety of the mall and had to hurry to avoid getting distracted by any... inconvenience.

Raph, who brought up the rear, felt an unpleasant tingling in his spine. Were they being watched? With sharp eyes he checked their surroundings. He almost expected The Shadow to lurk in one of the dark corners. However, there was nothing. No shape hovering somewhere either. Nothing out of ordinary. Shaking his head and scolding himself inwardly for his paranoia he sped up to keep closer to his siblings.

Leo couldn't help but notice the way towards the household store seemed to stretch farther than the night before. He clenched his teeth, but kept a neutral appearance to not alert his brothers. They all were already on edge. It was so similar to the orphanage with the stretching hallway... but here were no ghosts. They would've shown already. The previous night nothing had been there, and Leo was at least partly sure that wouldn't change overnight. Though... in this town everything was possible.

Donatello had a tight grip on his younger brother's hand as they followed Leo towards their goal. He also noticed the extended distance and expected an ambush every second. Every muscle in his body was tense with suppressed fear. He was sick of the darkness. The pale moonlight did nothing to assure him. In fact, it made him want to turn around and hide. Nothing has attacked them yet. He should really get his shit together, he knew.

Michelangelo had a bad feeling immediately after stepping out of the drugstore. He's been unconscious when they arrived the night before, so he didn't think about the durance of their walk. Something felt very off. His intuition was pretty reliable, even when he was sick, so when he felt the urge to look to the left he pressed his eyes closely together, letting Donnie's hand guide him blindly. He didn't want to see whatever his subconscious wanted him to see. Mikey had enough scares to last for months worth of nightmares. And since his brothers didn't react at all, maybe he's been imagining it.

When they reached the household store Leo let out a soundless breath of relief. Raph made short work of picking the lock again, while Don kept warily checking their surroundings.

"Everything okay?" the leader asked, resting a hand on Mikey's shoulder.

Reluctantly the youngest turtle opened his eyes to meet Leo's concerned gaze. "Are you feeling worse?" Leo inquired, moving his hand to the freckled cheek.

"N-No. It's fine... This place just gives me the creeps." He offered a tiny smile, relaxing a little when Don's hand gave his a reassuring squeeze and Leo pressed his lips to his forehead.

"Yeah... We'll leave as soon as possible." With that Leo took a deep breath and entered the store after Raph pushed the doors open.

Mikey didn't really know if he should feel relieved that he wasn't the only one scared or worried that even his fearless brother felt uneasy.

He tugged on Don's hand, pulling him over the threshold of the shop. If something happened he wanted to be in the same room as his brothers.

Donnie gave a shaky smile at that and pulled his little brother closer in a hug while their mates searched for their make-shift weapons. When this was over they just _had_ to take a vacation at Casey's farmhouse.

It didn't take Leo and Raph long to find the desired objects. Together with their brothers they stepped out of the shop again.

Leonardo hesitated as he looked around. Something was different. Though... he couldn't tell what. The other shop doors were still closed, everything looked just the same.

Slower than necessary, as he was still checking out the mall's interior, he moved towards the high main entrance.

Mikey felt his heart pound faster and harder. Something was off. Very _very_ off. Stubbornly he focused on Donnie's shell in front of him, refusing to see something he didn't want to. He cursed himself when he gave into his intuition, turning his head to the left side, eyes immediately catching on something at the stores on the other side.

His breath hitched, the tiny sound enough to stop their high-strung brothers in their tracks.

"What is it?" Raph whispered, not daring to focus on Mikey. He kept his eyes on their background, muscles tense as he waited for something to jump them.

"S-Shouldn't..." Mikey tried hard to keep the sudden shaking under control, letting out a single cough before swallowing painfully. "Shouldn't those m-mannequins be b-behind the... t-the windows?"

Realization struck Leo at the words. Of course. Yesterday the mannequins were inside the stores. He hadn't paid them any attention then. How could he not notice them standing in front of the shops now?

Don's breath hitched like Mikey's had at the sight of those faceless plastic models rowed neatly along the opposite wall. Unmoving.

Raph and Leo stepped closer to their younger brothers, weapons at the ready. The mannequins didn't move an inch.

"M-Maybe the ghost people put them out during the day?" Donatello offered, not even slightly convinced of his own theory.

"Maybe. Yes." Don had to hand it to Leo. He managed to not sound the slightest bit scared, while the genius was sure he'd almost pissed himself at the scare it gave him. Mikey was in no better condition, pressing close to Donnie as if he could crawl into his shell with him.

"Let's get the shell outta here." Raph's voice didn't waver, but the sweat on his forehead told his brothers of his nervousness.

"Try to keep an eye on them..." Leo told Donnie and Mikey, as he had to make sure nothing got in their way and Raph was watching their backs.

The olive turtle gulped hard down his dry throat, but nodded dutifully. As long as they were watched, they wouldn't move... right?

Walking a little faster now, they got closer to the door. It took every ounce of self control in Leonardo's body to not start running when the high main entrance was fully in sight. They were almost there.

-CRASH-

The sound of glass breaking right behind them almost gave each of them a heart attack. From the window of a shoe shop they just passed a hand was sticking out. As if the mannequin punched-

With a start the turtles remembered the other mannequins and Mikey let out a hoarse yelp at how close the plastic puppets had come. One of them was only a few feet away, the blank surface staring directly at them.

Donatello was frozen in shock, his lungs barely working to get air into them, blood rushing in his ears. Raph gasped next to them, but he couldn't pry his gaze away from the puppet, in fear of it moving even closer.

"Shit... those things move whenever we stop watching them..." Raph breathed hard, gripping his pan tight.

Not having to be told, Mikey turned around so he was watching their right side, into the window they were standing in front of. Despite jumping at the sight that greeted him, he was glad he did. Inside the store he could see more mannequins. None of them was standing on their pedestals anymore, but randomly between the stands, facing the window.

With Leo watching the front they had all angles covered as best as they could.

"Okay. Slowly now. Don't make sudden moves and don't look anywhere else, no matter what you hear." Leo coached them, hazel eyes trained ahead, jaw set firmly.

Don and Mikey had their shells pressed tightly together as they walked, each of them touching Raph's and Leo's shells too to make sure all of them stayed together.

Whenever they passed a window and the mannequins were out of Mike's sight, seconds later the glass burst. The puppets froze before they could step out, Raph's amber gaze successfully keeping them immobile.

Donnie was trying to get his rapid heartbeat under control. It was easier now that they were further away from the closest mannequin. He didn't dare close his eyes even for a blink, using his second eyelid to make it possible. From his peripheral vision he thought the heads were turning in their direction, even if the bodies couldn't move.

"R-Raph... please tell me they aren't... watching us." he managed to get out, taking deep breaths to calm himself.

"Can't." The short reply spoke of Raph's fear. He rarely showed it, but his brothers knew him well. The hothead was trying hard to keep it together. He took a deep shaky breath, letting out a huff. "They're just plastic puppets. We could take them."

None of them tried to, though. Ever since the encounter with the ghost children, Raphael was wary to try such an approach again.

"We're almost there. Just keep walking." Hearing Leonardo's voice, calmer now, was like a warm blanket that chased the cold tendrils of fear away. Leo said they were close to freedom. They would make it.

Mikey tried to take shallow but steady breaths. His nose was stuffy again, and when he took deeper breaths it would catch in his raw throat, prompting him to cough. And that couldn't happen. Not right now. Through his open mouth it was easy for his brothers to hear the rasping as he breathed in.

Leo reached behind him with his free hand to find Mikey's and gave it a reassuring squeeze.

"You're doing great, baby. Just a little further." He coached, his only reply a weak squeeze back.

When they passed the last shop Leo ran ahead to open one side of the door so they could slip through immediately. His brothers followed the sound blindly. However, when Mikey saw the last window his breath hitched again at the sight of a faceless mannequin directly behind the glass, stiff hands raised as if to shatter the window.

Michelangelo couldn't do anything as throat constricted, he had to give into the urge to cough in order to just breathe. The glass in front of him burst, and suddenly he was yanked back from it. Through his teary eyes he saw the mannequin crawl through the broken window. He willed his legs to work even though his lungs wouldn't and let himself be dragged to the entrance by Don's cool arms.

Raphael's shell was in front of them then, eyes sweeping over the entirety of the mall and the mannequins that used every millisecond he wasn't watching them to come closer. A plastic hand, covered in rings and bracelets, touched his foot and with a startled growl he smashed his iron pan on the adjoining wrist. As feared it didn't do anything to the plastic.

Clenching his teeth, Raph kicked the arm into the rapidly approaching plastic crowd.

"Raph! Come on!"

Abandoning the puppet army, Raphael turned around and all but jumped through the door, under the boards, immediately helping Leo with pulling it close just as the mannequins reached it. The glass wouldn't withstand their pounding for long, but the wooden boards would hopefully keep them inside.

Ushering their younger brothers to a bench by the dried out fountain, they sat and tried to catch their breaths from that horrifying experience. Donnie was rubbing his baby brother's shell, helping with the coughs.

"What the hell. What. The. HELL." Raph stood and gripped rubbed his eyes with his knuckles. "They didn't do that yesterday!"

"The ghost children didn't attack us first either." Leo said with narrowed eyes as he watched the puppets cease their pounding, vanishing one by one.

A howling sound from the distance reminded them that they had to hurry up.

"Are you two alright?" Leo asked worriedly, squatting down in front of his two youngest mates. Both of them were pale, though he doubted he looked any better after that ordeal. Donnie put his foot up on the bench to pull the bandage tighter again, leaning into Leo's hand as it came to rest on his cheek.

"I'm okay. Let's go find the Shadow Freak so we can finally get out of here." Don was startled when Leo handed him the long kitchen knife. "What...?"

"Take it. You're in no condition to carry Mikey."

"It barely hurts anymore, Leo. I can do it." Donnie protested with a frown.

"I know you could, honey. But I can tell it hurts, you're going to be slower because of it. And Mikey's added weight is gonna slow you down even more." Leo let out a sigh at the unhappy frowns on both of his baby brother's faces and rubbed a hand over his face. Way to insult both of them at once.

"What I meant," he started again, squeezing the sea-green and olive thighs with his hands, "is that it's more logical if I take Mikey. After him I'm the fastest, so with the added weight we'll be at about the same speed."

Leo mulled that over in his head and at Don's raised eye ridge he could tell that sounded not really any better. He tried to open his mouth again, but Don stopped him by putting his hand on his mouth and shaking his head.

"I get it. Shut up before I'm gonna put you into the doghouse." Raph let out a chuckle from behind them, gaze fixated on the surrounding buildings and streets. Leo cleared his throat and nodded before turning around, indicating for Mikey to get on his shell.

The orange-banded ninja had to admit, he was glad he didn't have to run on his own. The adrenaline has kept him on his feet inside the mall, but now that they all calmed down he felt it crashing, his muscles and head hurting again. He buried his face in Leo's shoulder, intending to just rest for a few seconds, but found it hard to lift his head again.

The next howl sounded closer, urging the brothers to move.

"This way. Maybe we can reach the hospital before it gets us." Leo said, starting into the right direction.

They didn't know what would await them at the hospital, or how they would fight and defeat The Shadow, but he was sure they'd need all their strength for it. So fighting a vicious wolf was better avoided.

Used to it, they opted for taking the rooftops. So close to the center of the town they stood close enough together to make jumping them easy. In addition, they could avoid any threats on the ground. After that scene in the mall Leo wouldn't put it past their faceless enemy to leave some more surprises for them.

The sign of a psychic shop down below across the street began glowing.

"Ignore it." Was all Leo said, keeping a tight grip on Mikey's legs as they ran past the sign.

Up ahead they could already see the hospital, a large green cross glowing too, but flickering. Hazel eyes narrowed at the sight. No matter if it was a trap, they had to go there.

Some more minor signs left and right from them turned on as they passed, though they wouldn't stop for anything. Leonardo grit his teeth at the close sound of howling. Mikey's grip on his shoulders tightened.

"It's about thirty feet behind us on the ground." Donnie stated, a determined expression on his face as they ran. He had to keep it together.

"Think we can outrun it?" Raph asked, grip on the handle of the pan already tightening.

Donnie calculated the distance between them and the hospital and bit his lip.

"If we could jump from the last roof through the first floor's window I'd say yes. It can't climb, or else it would be already up here."

"It's too far away, we won't make it." Leo hissed, coming to a stop at the ledge of the last house. Maybe without Mike's added weight, but as it was they wouldn't reach the window.

Below them the wolf growled, eyes glowing dangerously. It started pacing at the ground between them and the hospital, stare never wavering.

"We gotta kill it." Raph concluded, grinding his teeth.

"If we _can_ kill it..." Raphael's aggressive stance eased up a little at those words. "If it's not like the ghost children."

"We gotta try. And if it doesn't work, I'll at least distract it long enough so you can get Mikey to the hospital."

Before Leo could protest that horribly stupid idea, Raph and Donnie jumped down together. Immediately the wolf attacked them. Thanks to their training they dodged rather easily. Donatello tried slashing it with the knife, but the steel went right through it.

"Ghost wolf." He hissed loud enough for Raph to hear, jumping out of the way when the wolf tried to bite him.

"Fearless, we're gonna keep him busy, move your ass!" Raphael shouted without looking away from the canine. He and Donnie kept dodging the attacks.

The wolf's ears perked up at the soft almost inaudible sound of Leo's feet hitting the dirt.

"Yo, we're here, ya ugly muzzle!" Hoping to draw the wolf's attention back to him, Raph swung his pan to swish through its body.

Chocolate and amber eyes widened in surprise when the iron collided with the side of the long snout, crushing a few of the sharp teeth and cracking the jaw.

The wolf yowled and snarled, turning to attack the turtles again while Leo watched from the outer wall of the hospital. He desperately wanted to help them. But Mikey's convulsing body as he coughed again reminded him he had to stay. His heart jumped when the pan collided with the wolf's head.

Not one to pass up a chance like this, Raphael grinned with new confidence and swung the pan again. The wolf rolled to the side, jumping to attack a second later. Donatello began shouting at it, successfully distracting it.

The spiritual being didn't know who to focus on. His destined instincts were to get the two turtles away from the hospital. But the one with the pan could hurt him. And the other one kept shouting, putting off his fine hearing.

Seizing the opportunity Raph shot forward, silent for once while Don distracted the wolf with his voice. All the fear and frustration, all the rage he's been feeling since arriving in this hellhole, Raph poured everything in his blow as it hit the head of the wolf full force.

There was a sickening crunch before the canine collapsed where it stood, eyes wide and dulled with the sudden dead. It stayed for barely two seconds before it dissolved into white sand, blown away by a sudden wind that made the turtles shudder.

Not waiting for another attacker, Don and Raph ran over to Leo and Mikey.

"Damn that felt good." Raph breathed out, grinning at the feeling of most of the tension leaving his neck and shoulders.

"I don't get it, how could you hurt it?" Don shook his head, catching his breath.

"The pan... it's iron. Iron hurts ghosts." Mikey breathed, remembering all the horror movies he liked to watch back then, when it only was a movie.

"Good to know. They're gonna be in for a good Raphael-pounding." Mikey chuckled at the double-meaning, intending to make a joke, but ended up coughing into Leo's shoulder.

"Let's get inside before we find out if the wolf had friends." Leonardo muttered, warily looking around.

Despite feeling it was a bad idea, the turtles made their way to the main entrance. It was easier than breaking into a window and climbing in, after all.

The door swung open easily. Just like the night they found Donatello here, it was dark, despite the emergency lights. Tentatively they stepped into the main hallway, only jumping slightly when the door snapped shut behind them.

"I got a feeling this is a bad idea." Don stated, more to himself than to anyone particular. He moved up front, having memorized the layout from the sketches in the book.

Don led them to the staircase, sighing as he looked down. The first time he went down there, he hallucinated the gruesome deaths of his brothers.

Raph's hand on his shoulder gave a reassuring squeeze before the larger turtle moved forward, about to step down.

"N-No..." They stopped, looking quizzically at their baby brother. His freckled face was sweaty, and he wore a deeply concentrated expression.

"What is it, Mikey?" Leo asked, turning his head slightly.

"We have to go upstairs."

"The plan was to get into the sewers, sweetheart. We have to go downstairs." Donnie frowned at the glassier blue eyes and Mike's expression. He rested a hand on his baby brother's forehead, but Mikey barely registered the touch.

"His temperature's rising again..." The genius mumbled, concern evident in his eyes.

"Don't you feel it?" Mikey whispered, looking at his brothers as if they were crazy.

"I only feel your body burning like a furnace, baby. Why don't you try to rest a little?" Leo tried to coax Mikey into letting it go, thinking he was delusional. However, the sea-green turtle shook his head frantically.

"No, there's a... a pull. From upstairs. We have to go there first."

The older turtles exchanged looks. It could just be fever-talk. But they followed Mikey's hunch to the hospital already. What harm could it be to follow this one too?

"Alright, Mikey. We'll go upstairs." Leo spoke to Mikey, taking the lead with Don and Raph slightly behind him on either side. "You have to tell me where to go, okay?" The leader wasn't quite convinced Mikey was completely there, so he thought it was better to keep talking to him to keep him grounded.

They reached the second floor when Mikey's voice broke the silence.

"There. The... the last room on the right."

The hallway that lay in front of them didn't look inviting at all. The emergency light was flickering and humming like in some bad horror movie. Like in the rest of the hospital, papers were strewn around, only that most of them were sprinkled with red paint... or blood. At the end of the hallway was a window that let the moonlight in. The branches of a bare tree were tapping against the glass.

"This is getting ridiculous..." Raph muttered, taking in the scene.

"Are you sure this is the way, Mikey?" The freckled turtle nodded, hands tightening on Leo's shoulders again before he pointed at a wall where bloody smears left a trail.

"There's the picture of the lighthouse..." he mumbled, feeling sick all of a sudden. "I... something bad happened..."

Usually Raphael would've made a sarcastic comment about that, like wasn't that obvious with all the blood around? But he kept his mouth shut. When they were finally out of this shithole he'd hold his tongue for at least a month, he swore to himself.

"Do you really wanna go there?" Leo asked, shifting when he felt Mikey wiggle around. "What are you doing?"

"Let me down..." The youngster demanded, swaying a little when standing on his own two feet again. Raph steadied him with a strong arm around his shoulders, resting the pan on his opposite shoulder.

"We have to." Mikey finally answered Leo's question and shook Raph's arm off. Like in trance he took the first steps into the hallway.

_He dragged his feet, stumbling and slipping on the papers._

Deep breath in. Deep breath out. The air grew thick and hot.

_The hallway tilted from a dizzy spell. Helplessly he reached out to support himself against the wall._

Deep breath in. And out. The outlines of the hallway were fading in and out of focus, the only thing standing out the smears of blood on the wall.

_A groan as his knees hit the ground, followed by his hands. Arms straining under his own weight. _

Two three-fingered hand prints were barely visible under a few pieces of paper.

_A scream from his hoarse throat as he was yanked back by rough hands on his ankles._

The trail of blood ended by the door.

Donnie watched worriedly, trepidation knotting his stomach as he followed his brightly banded brothers. Leo grabbed his hand and gave it a small squeeze, face in a frown.

"Something's not right..." Donatello sighed, cursing himself when he felt fear gripping him again. He thought he had it under control now, but something about this hallway...

Before Leo could give him an answer, Mikey and Raph reached the last door. The sea-green hand was hovering over the handle, shaking from both exhaustion and fear.

Raphael stood as close as possible to his youngest brother without actually touching him, ready in case he fainted. His amber gaze was fixated on the door, though. Dread was twisting inside of him, seeing the state Mikey seemed to be in, and the way Donatello paled even more.

Leonardo had a determined expression on his face as he waited for Mikey to open the door. He didn't like having his youngest mate going first. He should be the one taking the risk.

Just as he was about to suggest _he_'d open the door, Mikey's fingers curled around the handle and he pressed it down, taking a few shallow breaths before pulling it open.

A foul smell greeted them, along with more blood on the ground, puddling towards the right, where a bed-

"NO!"

Donnie's knees grew weak, the only thing keeping him semi-upright were Leo's arms around him. The room, the bed, Mikey...

The leader himself barely held himself together, feeling bile rise in his throat.

Raph's head was spinning as he staggered backwards, not able to pry his gaze away from the bed, trying to get his airways to work again.

Mikey stood there with wide eyes, frozen as he watched his own clone strapped to the bed. Dead.

He wasn't wearing his mask, he was completely bare. Most of his body was covered in dried blood. It had oozed from his wrists, rubbed so raw it cut the skin open. Some came from his mouth. Most of it, though, came from his lower region. There were several deep bites and bruises on his thighs. His tail was broken at the base, swollen and black, tucked away for easy access to the torn and bleeding hole.

Time seemed to be standing still for whole seconds, until Don couldn't take it anymore and twisted away to empty his stomach. It was his dream. He dreamed about brutally raping Mikey. And maybe... and maybe their clones did.

The sound of their genius brother retching seemed to break the spell on the rest of the brothers.

Leo fell to his knees beside Donnie, trying to comfort him by patting his shell, and trying even harder to keep his own food inside.

Raph blinked, mind rapidly yelling at him that this on the bed wasn't his Mikey. It was a clone. His Mikey was standing there, swaying and-

Automatically Raphael reached forward to catch his baby brother as his knees gave out completely. Not trusting his own legs at the moment, Raph sat on the ground with Mikey cradled in his lap. Shaking, he scooted backwards, away from the bed and towards Leo and Donnie.

The olive turtle leaned against Leo, face buried in his shoulder as he wept. Leonardo swallowed hard, keeping the bile inside as he tried to calm Donnie. When he saw Mikey unconscious his breath hitched, skin paling another shade. "Is he... okay...?"

"Yeah..." Raph exclaimed, grip on his brother tightening. "No... he just passed out..."

With a heavily shaking hand Donnie reached out, sight blurry with tears, and touched Mikey's hand. He let out a relieved sob when the slightly smaller hand squeezed his back slightly.

"Quite a pity, I have to admit." Three heads whipped around to the door, where Leo's clone stood with his arms crossed and a dirty smirk on his face. "But he wouldn't listen..."


	7. Chapter 7

"_Quite a pity, I have to admit." Three heads whipped around to the door, where Leo's clone stood with his arms crossed and a dirty smirk on his face. "But he wouldn't listen..."_

Something in Donatello snapped. Clenching his fists, he rose to his feet along with his brothers. The only thing holding Raphael back from lunging at the clone was the baby brother in his arms. Leo's face turned cold with hatred at his counterpart. Stepping up front he glared at the clone.

The forest green skin had some burns all over, some of them looked really bad, but his face was indifferent.

"What? Why the hate?" The blue-banded clone wore an amused expression, arms crossed loosely in front of his chest.

"You have three seconds to start explaining before I'll slash your fucking throat." Leo threatened.

"Really? You think you can pull it off?" The clone mocked.

"I don't know. Why don't you ask your Donatello?"

The mention of his brother got the clone's attention. A few short moments he was quiet, before he returned the glare of his twin.

"You didn't."

"No, he didn't. I did." Raph spoke up, grip on Mikey tightening. "He didn't stand a chance. And you won't either." There was venom in his voice, a dark promise. The other Leo's breath hitched, eyes becoming glassy and unseeing as he shook, clenching his fists.

"You're different. You shouldn't know how to fight. None of the previous ones could." The clone wasn't making any sense. Leo was itching for answers.

"What are you talking about? What's going on here?" Donnie asked, voice dripping with hatred. "Why would you do that-" He gestured blindly towards the bed, unable to take another look in fear of throwing up again, "to your baby brother?!"

And maybe the clone did seem to falter a little then before steeling himself again, squaring his shoulders. He clenched his teeth, staring into the other turtles' eyes.

"You have no idea what it's like..."

"Shit Fearless. Let's just kill him. That was the plan." The clone took a defensive stance at that. The brothers could tell immediately that he really had no idea how to fight. Two quick moves and he'd be out for the count.

"Explain and we might let you live." Leo ignored Raph's protest in favor of pinning the copycat with a matching intense gaze.

"He gave us this chance. You're ruining it all!"

"Who is _He_? The Shadow?"

"You won't defeat him... He's stronger than you! And he will destroy you for taking our Donatello away!"

"Stop this shit and talk!" Donnie hissed, taking a step forward. However, Leo held an arm out to keep him in the back. His counterpart was unpredictable, he'd rather have his brother safe behind him. The leader held out his hand, hearing Donnie sigh before the knife was handed over.

**_xxxxx_**

"Michelangelo..."

The echoing voice boomed in Mikey's head, making it pound in time with his heartbeat.

Slowly he opened his eyes, jumping when he saw his clone sitting in front of him. It took him a few seconds to realize he was in a spiritual trance, and the turtle in front of him was barely there, transparent.

"What... where am I?" He asked his clone, catching the blue gaze with his own.

"You are still in the hospital. I pulled your spirit to this realm so I could talk to you."

"Okay..." What else was Mikey to say to that?

"We don't have much time. Look, you saw my body. My brothers did this to me because _he_ brainwashed them. I tried to snap them out of it, but they were too far gone. When I died my soul couldn't leave this hellhole. I tried warning the previous victims, but in the end _he_ always killed them. And I got punished for treason."

"The book... did you...?"

"Yes. When I was still alive I wrote it to warn the new victims, but every time I settled down for more than a few minutes they would catch up with me. I'm sorry for doing this to you, by the way." The clone cleared his throat and gestured over Mikey's body.

"I don't have to draw you a picture of what they did to me. I died of infection. When I joined my soul with yours you kind of got some of the symptoms."

"The fever?"

"Yeah. And the throat... well, you've seen the blood from my mouth. Anyways, it was the only way I could leave the hospital and help you guys."

"You helped us?" Mikey blinked, shaking his head in confusion. He couldn't remember a clone of him showing up to save the day.

The transparent turtle nodded with a sad smile.

"I know my brothers. And I was pretty sure you guys had the same dynamic. I had to get you to the orphanage so you guys could find my book. I knew either of you would notice the light and would investigate. And Raph wouldn't let a bunch of children fend for themselves."

Mikey nodded with wide eyes.

"I wasn't prepared for Leo's stubbornness. Kinda lucky that the wolf showed up just then. He was supposed to keep you away from the orphanage.

You wouldn't have been able to get past the ghost children, so I let you fall into the basement, hoping you'd find the tunnel fast. Unfortunately my dear brothers found you first. Good thing your Leo and Raph found the book eventually after I opened the door for them."

"We... We didn't finish reading it. The hints you gave... the hospital..."

"He wouldn't just wait for you to puzzle everything out when you had the book. He would've ambushed you that night, I had to get you out of there."

"The mannequins..." His counterpart nodded quickly.

"I couldn't contact you as clearly as I wanted. My... my trauma got in the way. That's why you had those nightmares. As soon as you saw it with your own eyes the images finally dissolved and I could do a direct approach."

Michelangelo nodded slowly, biting his lip. That was really something he would do. That's why the things happened. It wasn't The Shadow knowing them so well. It was himself.

"Who is _He_? And how can we defeat him?" He pressed, desperate to get some answers.

"We're not allowed to say his name... He moves as a shadow through the town, the only place he takes a bodily form is below this hospital. When he's in his body, you can kill him. He is a fighter, like you are, so you have to be careful. You got that kitchen knife, it has to go right through his heart. That should lift the curse of the town and get you back to your own dimension... and my soul can finally be free."

"Couldn't you have written that in the book? Like, right at the beginning?" The clone averted his gaze and blushed.

"I was on the run. And it took me quite a while to get behind it. Unfortunately too long, because my brothers got me before I could finish."

There was a deep sadness, weighing heavily on his twin, and Michelangelo felt the urge to cry from how it squeezed his own heart.

"How... How did _He_ brainwash them? My brothers... I know they would never hurt me. How did _He_ manage to make them kill you?"

**_xxxxx_**

"Did you really kill him?" Leo's clone's eyes were unfocused. Donnie was convinced that he wasn't completely there, mentally. The genius could also tell that his lack of cooperation was agitating Raphael more and more, and if he wasn't carrying Mikey he would have already jumped the clone.

He saw Leo's shuddering, still shaken from the past minutes, and growing angrier by the second. His famous self-control was slipping. Donatello himself was about to burst. The dream he had. The thought alone that they would do something like that to Mikey...

"We had to. He was trying to a-"

"Don't you dare saying he tried to attack you! Donnie loves us, he wouldn't hurt our look-alikes!" Don clenched his fists at the outburst, before resting his hand on Leo's shoulder to keep him grounded.

"Raph's clone molested me." The olive turtle said, eyes narrowed as he studied the clone's reaction. Leo caught on. The way his counterpart seemed to lose his grip on reality. The way he shook, losing his composure.

"You three tried to rape our Michelangelo at the carnival. Just like you did to yours."

Leo's own hazel eyes narrowed as he watched the turtle in front of them let out a mix between a sob and anguished cry. The manic gaze dropped to Mikey in Raph's arms, a tear sliding down.

"We had to! He wouldn't listen!" He gripped his head, breath growing shallow. "He gave us permission! We could finally be together!"

**_xxxxx_**

"_He_ has great spiritual power. When we... when we got together we hid it from him. We were scared of his reaction. He was very traditional... and strict."

A horrible feeling of dread knotted Mikey's stomach. Somehow that sounded familiar.

"Of course he found out. When he confronted us, we were scared. Scared that he would take it away from us. We tried convincing him that it wasn't a bad thing. That it brought us closer together as a family..."

The clone shuddered at the memory, and Mikey felt the knot tighten. His intuition gave him a hunch in what direction this was going.

"D-Did it work?" He asked in a quiet voice, dreading the answer. He watched as his own blue eyes flickered up to meet his, filled with sorrow.

"We expected him to be mad. To maybe even disown us. We hoped the family card would make him reconsider everything... That he would need a little time to get over it and let us be..." The clone's breath hitched as he tried to get it out.

"He said it was a good idea. To get the family closer together."

"Stop." Mikey shook his head. He didn't want to hear it. Once again he cursed his empathetic nature.

The clone hesitated and shrugged.

"Leo and I understood the implications immediately. When we declined Raph and Don were mad, thinking we didn't want his blessing." Wrapping his arms around himself the clone continued.

"_He_ was watching us, and I've never seen his eyes so... so _evil_. Later we explained to Donnie and Raph and fortunately they were on our side. Shocked even... I mean, who wouldn't be? We kept hiding our relationship, only doing things on patrol, out of fear _He _would find out again. It wasn't ideal, but better than the alternatives."

"All the time... he was planning. The thought was planted in his head and grew. He approached Donnie first, thinking he would break under the pressure and admit that we were still together. Don managed to keep it a secret. We were wary of him, even trying to avoid being alone with him. He noticed and it made him mad.

I was unlucky enough to be his next victim. I swear I've never been more scared in my life... well, until then."

Mikey really didn't want to hear it. Still he found himself asking, "What did he do?"

"He knew family was the most important thing in my life. He tried to apply to that. And I was really conflicted... he tried to guilt-trip me. Good thing Raph interrupted us before something happened."

The clone rubbed his forehead and took a deep breath.

"You know, sometimes I regret it. If we had given in none of this would've happened."

Mikey didn't know how to answer. He felt as if all breath left his body and it would take ages to find his voice again.

"We planned to run away, you know? He's never been treating us like family. We were mere slaves to him, whipping boys. He was human before he became a rat, a martial artist, an expert for spiritual energy and stuff...

He created this realm and trapped us in it. We fought it. The fear was eating away on us, made us vulnerable. He gave us a way out, if we joined him... If we gave ourselves to him. We managed to keep our sanity for a while. But... after months of this torture, one by one we gave in. I tried to keep us together, but they were sick of this. We all wanted to be together in peace, to just put an end to all this. They lured me in... but... I couldn't do it. You know, intuition."

He gave a bitter chuckle, while Mikey was trying to keep himself together.

"I had a feeling something bad would happen if we all gave in. So I broke free and was on the run since then."

Michelangelo wanted to barf. To think that... no. To do that with their own... They had to kill a version of their own father.

"He's been trapping our counterparts from different dimensions in here since I died, trying to get a substitute for me... And now that your bros killed my Donnie, he's a target too."

**_xxxxx_**

"If he had just given in we could've been happy together!"

Leo, Raph and Donnie watched the clone fall apart. He was talking nonsense, clearly losing it.

"Leo..."

The voice startled all of the turtles. Raph's clone appeared in the door, placing a hand on the forest-green shoulder.

"Why didn't he listen?!" Leo's clone cried, clinging to Raph's counterpart now.

"I don't know. He could've saved us from... from this." The larger clone had a vacant expression on his face as he patted the shell. "Donnie's dead." The amber eyes glowed angrily as the clone stared at the turtles. "You killed him."

He had the same manic aura as the other Leo had. They should kill them before they snapped in their unpredictable state. But they were so close to getting to the bottom of this.

The Leo-clone choked and shook his head, forcing himself to stand straight again.

"Father's gonna be mad. We're gonna have to take him too."

"F-Father?!" Leo asked, taking a step back.

"Shut up. Yes, father. He wants him. We need him to get out of here." Clone-Raph had his gaze on Mikey's unconscious form. "And now we need a replacement for Donnie too."

Donatello took a shaky step back as the intense gaze zeroed in on him.

"You're seriously deranged if ya think we're just gonna let you take our brothers!"

"You will not stop us from getting out of here!" Clone-Raph roared, taking a step forward. "We've been here for ages, I want my freedom! We deserve it! We didn't let the others stop us, and you won't succeed either!"

**_xxxxx_**

"You should wake up now, my brothers are losing it again... they're dangerous in that state. They killed most of the previous victims..."

Mikey, who's been quiet the whole time, blinked himself out of his thoughtful state. This was horrible. He couldn't believe what his clone told him.

"I... my brothers will fight them. They're gonna kill them first." He swallowed hard, trying to sort out his thoughts.

"You're the first ones capable of doing that... The others didn't now how to fight the way you do." The transparent turtle sighed deeply. "You can't kill them. Our father will use all his power to keep you away from his lair and torture you until you lose your minds like my brothers did... it's just gonna be a repeat of what he did to us. You don't want that..."

Michelangelo bit his lip in thought. No, he didn't want that. He and his brothers were strong, they would fight for a while... but their counterparts had been strong too. Their minds have been broken by their own father. There was no guarantee that this wouldn't happen to them too after months of psychological torture...

"Can you... you know, leave my body? I can't fight if I can't even stand." The clone shrugged, face sad but empathetic as he watched Mikey compose himself.

"I could. But then I lose the little spiritual power I have. I can't help you anymore."

"We just have to... to run the knife through fa- through _his_ heart. We can do this." Mikey found his own body flickering and fading, apparently about to wake up.

"Alright. Good luck. And... don't give in, okay? Don't let him break you."

**_xxxxx_**

Mikey awoke, drenched in sweat in Raphael's arms. The ceiling was spinning as he felt a prickling sensation running through his whole body. After blinking a few times Mikey felt like he could breathe again. His body, still a little weak, didn't ache anymore. His clone's spirit left him.

_Don't worry_, he thought with determination settling in, _I won't let a twisted version of father destroy me._

He vaguely heard the a dark voice shout something and then a body next to him moved. Gathering all his strength he spoke up in a croaking voice.

"Leo, don't!"

All five pairs of eyes focused on him. Raph's grip on him tightened and Donnie's hand rested on his head.

"Mikey! Are you okay?"

"Yes. I'm fine." Michelangelo rasped, his throat slowly healing as he struggled in his brother's arms to be let down.

Finding his legs steady he stood straight, only barely leaning on Raph as his senses came back.

"I don't want this all anymore... I don't want to live in fear anymore." He said, locking eyes with his brothers' clones. They blinked, surprised.

"Mikey, what are you talking about? We're gonna kill them and The Shadow and we'll be free!" Raph growled, he and Donnie holding Mikey's arms as he started to take a step towards the clones.

"No... we can't win. I want this to end." He took deep breaths, staring at the clones. "Please... I want us all to be happy..." Clone-Raph's gaze softened as Clone-Leo gasped and automatically tried to come closer.

Leo hissed in warning at his counterpart, making him stop and glare back.

The leader's hazel eyes glanced at Mikey behind him with a frown. Had he lost his mind... or...

With a sigh Leo relaxed his stance, looking at his counterpart. He even let the knife he'd grabbed from Donnie sink.

"He's right. It's not worth it. We all want out of here." Raphael's and Donatello's confused expressions slowly faded. Apparently their brothers had a plan.

"What... what do you need us to do?" Donnie asked, pulling Mikey closer to him.

Michelangelo knew it was a dangerous game. He _knew_ what the clones wanted them to do and it was making his stomach turn. But he needed to pretend to give in, to find their father and to... to kill him. The thought alone made him want to throw up.

The clones were suspicious of course. They may have lost their mind, but they weren't stupid. Mikey grabbed Don's hand and approached them. Leo and Raph tensed, but didn't stop them this time. Donnie himself was nervous, Mikey could feel his shaking, but he soldiered on, blindly trusting his baby brother.

"We want our family back..." Mikey didn't even have to force the tear that ran down his cheek. The thought of their past and what they had to endure hurt his little empathetic heart, and the fear of their future...

Clone-Leo wrapped his arms around both Donnie and Mikey, crying. Clone-Raph kept an eye on their counterparts as he put a hand on Mikey's shoulder.

"We will be happy. Finally a happy family. Come on... follow us."

Donatello's muscles relaxed as soon as Clone-Leo let go of him, his grip on Mikey's hand enough to cut the circulation off.

"I hope you know what you're doing..." Donnie muttered low enough so the clones, who started walking down the hall, wouldn't hear it.

"Trust me." Was all Mikey said, having a hard time getting his own heartbeat under control. His brothers had no idea what they were about to face. What they had to do...

Their Raphael and Leonardo were walking close behind them, determined expressions on their faces. Their clones had mentioned their father. Could a version of Splinter be behind all this? What was his plan? Leo dreaded that they'd have to kill a version of their father... this was definitely not what he expected.

There was still a possibility that they had a completely different father. A horrible twisted mage that created this world. Yeah. There was no way any version of Splinter could do this to his own sons.

This all could be a trap, too. The clones could lead them into an ambush.

The possibilities were endless. Why would they, after killing their own brother, give in and lead them to their master? Just because Mikey said what he did? It didn't make any sense. How did Mikey know what to say to them? That they would react that way?

Slowly they followed the clones down the stairs into the darkness. Leo put a reassuring hand on Donnie's shoulder when the genius started shaking as they got closer to the place they found him.

The chocolate eyes pressed tightly shut when they reached the bottom of the stairs, where he had the horrible hallucination. He wasn't ashamed to admit that it scared him deeply, the chance that this could happen for real.

Mikey's breath picked up, too as they followed a pitch black hallway. The only light came from behind them, and one single lamp was burning at an intersection at the end of the hall.

Mind reeling, Michelangelo tried to form a plan. He had no idea how each of them, even himself, would react to seeing The Shadow. What if he looked exactly like their Splinter at home? Mikey wasn't sure if he could kill him, then. It would be easier if he looked completely different, on his brothers too.

He needed the knife from Leo. He was pretty sure Donnie would put up a fight once it was revealed what was expected of him. And Leo, who worshipped their father, couldn't get himself to kill him... could he? Mikey dreaded doing it himself, but... he'd know how to get close enough to him. He'd just have to pretend long enough.

In the safety of the darkness, as much as the brothers started to despise it, it was easy to exchange looks to communicate mutely without the clones noticing a thing.

Mikey subtly held out his hand for the knife, face scrunched up as he tried to be strong. Leo studied his baby brother, trying to decide if he was actually stable enough to be wielding any kind of weapon. Mikey locked eyes with him, pleading his leader to just give in and trust him, even if he didn't trust himself at the moment.

With a soundless sigh Leo handed it over. He hated how this all turned out, to feel so helpless and out of control...

At the intersection there was huge painting of a city at night. The turtle brothers' hearts ached at the sudden homesickness hitting them. It may scare all of them, but they were determined to finish this once and for all, no matter who they had to face.

The clones made short work of taking the painting off, unceremoniously dropping it on the ground. Behind it was a hidden tunnel, not a single light illuminating the cement walls. In the distance they could hear the sound of rushing water. This was it. The entrance to The Shadow's lair.

Mikey took a deep shaky breath, hesitantly reaching out to take the offered hand of Clone-Leo. The counterpart smiled softly, the expression clashing horribly with the manic look in his eyes.

Clone-Raph led the way, followed by Clone-Leo, whose grip on Mike's hand tightened, pulling him along. Donnie's hand was around his little brother's wrist since he was still holding the knife. Raph and Leo followed close behind, speeding up when the clones did.

They seemed very eager to reach their father. To present him with a willing Michelangelo, and Donatello. So they can finally be free...


	8. Chapter 8

The sound of rushing water got louder as they reached the end of the tunnel. Hesitating for a second, Mikey and Donnie stepped into the open space, closely followed by their older brothers.

The room was circular and wide. The ground consisted of iron grates, so below they could see an artificial waterfall, leading into black nothingness. The halogen lamps created a cold light, a pressuring atmosphere.

Aside from a table at the far end, filled with fresh fruit, there was nothing on this level.

With dread, the turtles lifted their heads to a higher, smaller level, accessible over a ladder. They expected to find their Shadow there, but what they saw made Mike's stomach clench and turn. It was the clones' sleeping place apparently.

A huge circular bed was on some sort of pedestal, filled with various pillows and fluffy blankets. Usually he'd find that cute, he'd joke about wanting a bed like this at home for them to use. But now, knowing what this bed was for...

Left and right from it where glass cases, looking like lava lamps with colored globs in them. The blue one was almost completely filled, the globs pressing together at some places but never merging.

The purple one was a little less crowded, though still halfway filled.

Only about ten to twenty red globs were floating in the red one, and another one was completely empty. Strange symbols were drawn on the ceiling that none of the turtles could decipher.

However, where was The Shadow? Why wasn't it here?

Leonardo's eyes narrowed as he sensed something behind him, but before he could react something shot past their legs with amazing speed to wrap around Donnie's already hurt ankle. The olive turtle let out a scream of agony as a great force squeezed and pulled at his ankle, and with a sickening cracking sound the bone give in.

Donatello fell with a pained sob. Mikey crouched beside him, trying to keep him upright. Leo and Raph turned to face their attacker. Leo knew what he expected, but still it was like a punch to the gut actually seeing it.

Sure, he was taller and way more muscular than their own father. His fur had a dark brown color with wide stripes instead of gray. But he wore the same robe. He had the same eyes, only that his were glinting with something mean and evil. Sick.

His abnormally long tail was what broke Don's ankle, without so much as a warning. He stood there, so calm as if they were about to begin a meditation session back at home. It was as if someone bound Leo's arms as his heart constricted. He couldn't just attack him...

Raphael didn't have any qualms about that. Finally he found a worthy outlet for his frustrations. Without thinking he charged, but the rat only glared before evading the attack. He graciously danced out of reach every time the hothead came close.

Leo shook his head, forcing himself out this state. He sprang into action, assisting his brother.

The rat barely spared him a glance, easily avoiding him.

"Father, they want to give in! Please, stop..."

He didn't even react to Clone-Leo's plea, finally having enough of this game and using his tail again to hit Raph's side, throwing him against Leo so they both slid a few feet over the grates.

"They weren't. They were trying to fool us. They want to kill me..." Even his voice sounded so much like Splinter's that it hurt.

Mikey's breath hitched as he hefted Donnie closer, slowly walking backwards, away from the rat. How did he know of their plan?!

The black eyes were filled with rage and something else, and they narrowed as they focused on Mikey.

"Why... why is it always you? You stubborn little turtle. So many versions of you, and all of them are nothing trouble..." Michelangelo's breathing pattern picked up at the sly grin curling the rat's lips as he started approaching.

Mikey almost fell backwards in his hurry to get Donnie and himself away. The genius tried to help best as he could, but his leg was useless. A dark chuckle made him shake in fear.

"Leonardo, my son, take Michelangelo upstairs. Raphael, use Donatello to keep these two in line."

In a quick movement he turned around to block the attacking turtles. They fell back again at the sheer strength of the rat.

Mikey sat Donnie down so he could fight the clones, but when Clone-Leo managed to grab his left wrist he was stunned. The grip was too strong, it almost crushed his bones. In a sudden rush of panic he tried to yank his hand back, but then his other wrist was caught. Tears were running down from the hazel eyes in front of him, the face twisted in anger.

"How could you do this to us? Why won't you let us live in peace? Why are you torturing us?"

"T-Torture _you_?! He is the-ARGH!" Mikey choked on his own breath when Clone-Leo twisted his wrists until they broke like mere toothpicks.

Tears of pain sprang into his eyes, his knees were shaking, heart pounding. From behind him he heard Donnie try to get away as Clone-Raph approached him.

Clone-Leo let go of his useless hands in favor of scooping him up like a sack of potatoes. As he was carried towards the ladder, he saw Donnie being forced to his legs by Clone-Raph. The muscular arms were strategically placed, so Don couldn't use his own arms to defend himself. One of the hands was gripping the genius' chin, while the other was stroking over the head almost affectionately.

Donnie stopped struggling the second he realized what position he was in. One jerk of the clone's arms and his neck would snap.

Raph and Leo were still fighting to get to them, but the rat kept them at distance, barely using his hands and not even breaking a sweat while the turtles already began lagging from all the power they were using.

It was Leo who assessed the situation first and stopped his assault in favor of shouting at the rat, desperate tears clouding his vision.

"What the hell do you want from us?!" Raph felt so helpless as he watched Leo's counterpart carry off their baby brother, climbing upstairs already.

"Nothing of you, my dear Leonardo..." The rat smirked at the desperation in their eyes. Leo saw his twin already on the upper level, feeling his heart pound. He needed to stall the rat, he had to think of something to stop him from whatever he's planning to do. They had to get Donnie out of this situation too... One snap and he would be dead.

"How did you know we were trying to fool you?!"

"You have no idea how many versions of you I have brought here already. I know the way all of your minds work."

Leo bit his lip, trying to process everything at once.

"Why... why didn't you try to taunt me like you did the others?" The rat's smirk was making their insides twist.

"My lovely Leonardo, your previous versions, all of them, gave in first. I thought that deserved a little treat. Besides..." he motioned to the colored lava lamps on top, "... I have more than enough of your souls. You're of no use for me."

So the globs were... were souls? Of their previous versions, of the previous turtles that just gave in? Leonardo was in shock. How could he, known for his strong will and stamina, be the first one to let him win?

"Most Donatellos followed your lead shortly after, some others died before. As you can see I have enough of him too. So I suggest you don't try anything funny, one word from me and Raphael is gonna snap his neck in half. Wouldn't be the first time."

Raph felt helpless tears run over his cheeks as he saw the fear and pain in Donnie's eyes. He was supposed to protect his brothers, and now a twisted version of himself was about to kill him.

"What... then what do you want...?" Raph whispered.

"I only want my family to be together. To be united with them the way we should... You were always very hard to convince, Raphael... you rather died than giving in to my love."

The wording... he couldn't mean what he was implying... right? Raph's heart jumped to his throat as it clicked. Mikey being held on the bed above by Clone-Leo got a whole new sense now.

"You sick bastard!" Raph roared, clenching his fists.

"You boys said it yourself. It brings you closer together as a family. Is it so wrong that I want the same bond?"

Leo fell to his knees, thoughts racing. Their own father wanted _that_ from them... and _he_ was the first to give in. Every time...

"Ya bet that's wrong! Yer supposed to be our father!"

"And you're supposed to be brothers! My Donatello said it. We only have each other. Why are you four allowed to feel this love and I have to be alone? We are a family!"

**_xxxxx_**

Above them, Michelangelo and Leo's clone could hear everything, though they were distracted.

Mikey felt tears running down his face, they just wouldn't stop coming. Clone-Leo was straddling him, ever so gently stroking his cheek to wipe the wetness away. He sobbed softly at the tender expression that made the clone look just like _his_ Leo.

He wanted to push him away, but he couldn't feel his hands, the pain only dulled when he kept his arms still where Clone-Leo had placed them left and right from his face.

He didn't want to feel the soft silk sheets, or the butterfly kisses the clone was peppering him with.

"It's okay, my little angel... soon it's all over. Father will take your pain away and we will be free. You just have to let him..."

Mikey didn't answer. He pressed his eyes closed, begging to whatever deity there was that this was just another nightmare. Clone-Leo continued his soft touches, kissing his whole face to soothe him.

"It only stings a little. Almost the same as when we were doing it. It's gonna hurt less if you just relax and let yourself enjoy it..." Mikey whimpered when the mouth moved to his neck. The clone didn't react to the struggles, slowly caressing the tender skin.

"Let me help you relax, precious... I've missed you. We missed you."

He sounded exactly like his Leo. His mouth felt exactly the same as it sucked on his pulse-point. Mikey hated himself when he found his body slowly reacting to the familiar touch, a soft gasp escaping him. Clone-Leo churred in response, hands starting to massage the quivering outer thighs.

"That's it... I'm sorry for what I did to my Mikey... I won't make the same mistake with you. You're going to save us..."

Meanwhile Donnie's face was wet with tears too. His leg throbbed painfully as he tried to stay upright. He didn't want Clone-Raph to slip and break his neck on accident.

This version of Splinter was crazy. His motives... yeah, Donnie understood what rode him. That didn't mean they had to give in. Even though their chances of defeating him were definitely smaller than expected.

From his point he could see Leo falling apart. Seeing the big evil was a version of their own father was hard enough of a blow to him, but the knowledge that all of the previous Leonardos gave in so easily to the wicked rat... it broke something in their usually fearless leader. Don's heart ached for him. The person he's always looked up to, he's always worshipped ever since he could think of his own, was doing all this. Mentally torturing them, hurting his mates, and still Leo was staying with him.

And Raph... it hurt so much to see his toughest brother so broken. He was shaking from helpless anger. He wanted to save them so badly, but his fear of losing Donnie was forcing him to stay still. None of them said anything after the rat's speech.

"If one of them moves, kill him." Donatello glared at the tall rat as he walked past them towards the ladder. He couldn't see Mikey from here, but the knowledge of what exactly the villain wanted...

If he could only dislodge the grip on his head... just a little...

**_xxxxx_**

Mikey bit his lip till it bled, tried twisting his wrists, anything to dim the arousal. Clone-Leo used his strength to simply push his legs apart, settling in between them while his tongue still caressed Mike's sensitive neck.

"Ssh... my angel... I'm helping you..." he soothed, opening a tube of lube. At the sound Mikey jerked, grunting at the pain in his wrists as he struggled, trying to wiggle away from him.

"Are you done preparing him, my son?" Michelangelo froze at the voice of the rat. What about his brothers? He couldn't hear them anymore.

"I was about to start, father. He's still struggling." The other Splinter settled on the bed next to them, staring intently at Mikey.

"My precious little Michelangelo, this will only work if you give yourself willingly." The rat sighed, using one of his claws to scrape it down the center line of Mikey's plastron. "Don't you want this to end? If you give in we can all leave this realm and be happy together. All of us..."

Mikey shook his head frantically, gasping when one of Clone-Leo's thick fingers slipped into his entrance.

"I don't want this... please..." he begged, sobbing when the clone started stroking his tail while his finger crooked just the right way.

"Relax... just think of us. It's up to you if we live in damnation down here or if we escape this nightmare once and for all." Clone-Leo soothed, massaging Mikey's prostate and quickly inserting a second finger.

This is not happening. It _can't_ be happening. He heard his brothers shout again, the sound unbelievable loud as it echoed off the walls. It sounded as if they were insulting the clone, but the evil rat wasn't bothered at all by the sound. He just kept focusing on Mikey. He was so close to reach his goal.

**_xxxxx_**

Clone-Raph was focused. They needed to distract him. It was a dangerous game, but Donnie only needed a second to get out of the grip. His leg hurt like a bitch, it would be agonizing to free himself. He'd gladly take the pain if it gave them an advantage.

"You know, he... he doesn't need you anymore." The clone didn't move an inch, though from the closeness Donnie felt his face twitch. "He has at least twenty other Raphael souls. As soon as Mikey gives in you're expendable."

"Shut up!" The left foot shifted, muscles straining.

"Why would he keep you? You've gone crazy from this torture. You'd endanger his perfect vision of a happy family."

Raph had caught on to Don's plan and started to taunt his counterpart too.

"I could break you like a toothpick! I could kill you!"

"Yeah you could." Raph said, fire burning in his eyes. "But I know you. You don't want to hurt him. And if you do... what good are you for your father then?"

There was it. The twitch Don needed to get free. Gritting his teeth he used one of their practice moves to get out of the clone's grip. He hissed as he fell on his butt, but the single second was enough for his Raphael to charge at his twin.

Donatello scrambled backwards, watching the two dark turtles fight for a few seconds, and once he was sure Raph would win he crawled to where Leo was still kneeling on the ground.

"Leo! Leo, snap out of it!" he hissed, shaking his leaders shoulder. His brother only sobbed and shook his head, hands gripping the grates.

"I couldn't... why... I'd never..."

Donnie blinked through tears, eyes widening as he caught glimpse of the bed. He couldn't see Mikey from the angle, but Clone-Leo was moving aside, while the rat took his place, taking off his robe.

**_xxxxx_**

Mikey's breath hitched when this twisted version of his father took off his robe, revealing a muscled furry body and an intimidatingly large hairless dick.

"P-Please... stop..."

"My baby... this all can stop. All the pain... the hurt. Just give in."

Mikey took a shuddering breath, tears continuing to fall freely while his heart pounded away. The sound was loud in his head. Swallowing another sob, he closed his eyes and turned his face away, his shaking legs fell open in defeat.

**_xxxxx_**

Donatello gasped when the the symbols above the bed started glowing. He couldn't shout, it would alert the rat and they could be all killed. He could just transfer another version of them and try again.

Desperate, Donnie slapped Leo hard. The hazel eyes were wide as they locked with the chocolate gaze of his brother.

"Pull yourself together, Leo! We need you!" Donnie begged, watching as the utter defeat slowly cleared away, making room for determination.

Leo fixated the bed above them. Mikey had dropped the knife before when they were attacked... the handle was thick enough so it wouldn't have fallen through the grates... there.

Without thinking the leader jumped to where the kitchen knife was stuck in the grate and wrung it free, not even pausing to aim before he threw it towards the furry back with a roar that rivaled Raph's as the emerald turtle crushed his clone's head against the grates.

**_xxxxx_**

Mikey felt the furry hands grab his thighs and suppressed a whimper when his entrance was touched by something hot and hard. He couldn't believe he was letting this happen. All of his previous selves had been strong enough to withstand. Though... none of them have come so far before. Could they really blame him?

He wanted to throw up so badly, the bile already forming in the back of his throat as he waited for the inevitable to happen. For the rat to... to...

"Father!"

Mikey forced his eyes open at the sound. The rat above him wasn't moving, the tip of a bloody kitchen knife sticking out from where his heart was.

Not able to breathe, Mikey worked his legs to get away from the cock at his entrance. When he'd fall he didn't want it to accidentally impale him. Only a second later the body fell forwards. Out of instinct Mikey lifted his hands to prevent the rat from falling on top of him, bracing for the pain when suddenly he was falling.

His shell landed on hard ground. Three more thuds and grunts were around him, and only slowly Mikey dared to open his eyes again.

Instead of the strange glowing symbols he's seen before, he was looking at the familiar ceiling and of their favorite tunnel when they were going topside.

Both of his arms were still throbbing from his broken wrists and a pained gasp escaped him as he tried to get up.

A strong arm was wrapping around his shoulders to help him in a sitting position. Mikey took one look at the tear-filled amber eyes of Raphael before he completely broke down, sobbing uncontrollably as he pressed himself as close as possible to his big brother. Raph carefully adjusted him so his wrists weren't crushed before hugging him as tight as he dared.

He had some blood from his clone on him, but he didn't care at the moment.

At the same time, Leo was clinging to Donnie, cradling him, trying to keep it together. Donatello bore it with tears in his own eyes, nuzzling his brother's neck to comfort both of them.

"Is... is it over? Are we home?" Raph dared to speak first, scooting closer to his brothers with Mikey firmly held in his lap.

The youngest turtle nodded, taking deep breaths to get his heart-rate under control again.

"You hit his heart. That killed him. We're... we're home." The relief was overwhelming. Not caring about the dirty concrete floor they collapsed together, careful of the youngers' injuries.

None of them talked as they made their way back to the lair. Donnie was on Raph's back, resting his head on the muscular shoulder, while Mikey insisted he could walk on his own.

If it wasn't for their injuries, all of this could've been a nightmare. But the throbbing was real.

Mikey could kick himself. He really would have given in. His will was so easily broken. A second later and he... he wasn't even sure what would've happened.

Leo was having a hard time swallowing around the lump in his throat. He had let himself be thrown off so easily. He was hating on himself for what his previous versions have done, wallowing in self-pity, while Raph and Donnie practically saved the day.

If Donnie hadn't knocked some sense into him he would've let this... this monster rape his baby brother. It was wrong that he was their leader. So wrong.

At the entrance to the lair all of them hesitated. They never told their father about their relationship. They had to keep it a secret. The fear that he would do something similar...

However, there was no elderly rat greeting them as usual when they got back from patrol.

"Maybe he's already asleep..." Donnie offered, his voice exhausted. "Let's get patched up first."

In the infirmary they took their time setting bones and splinting them, taking care of any wounds. It felt so... normal, in a way. There were no ghosts or shadows trying to ambush them, it was their home. Their safety.

And yet, the fear was still deep in their bones.

"So... we should get some sleep..." Leo said, watching each of his brothers and biting his lip.

"Yeah..." Raph agreed, though none of the brothers moved. They didn't want to sleep alone.

"You know... I can't use my hands. And Donnie can't stand. What if we need something in the middle of the night?" Mikey tried a smile, that turned out really shaky. Donnie quickly nodded.

"Yes, it's best if we all sleep together. Just in case."

It was so awkward, having to hide again.

All of them sighed in relief as they snuggled together on numerous pillows and blankets in the pit. Raph made sure the casts of his brothers were visible, so when their father woke up he wouldn't think of anything else than brothers looking out for each other.

None of them thought they'd fall asleep at all, but all the adrenaline and exhaustion tore through their bodies and they passed out almost immediately.

**_xxxxx_**

"So... The other Mikey communicated with you?" Mikey nodded, letting Leo feed him some cereal.

"When he left my body I was fit again. He told me the knife had to go through the rat's heart... I thought when I pretended to give in I could get close enough to kill him..."

"If he knew we were trying to fool him, why did he let us close in first place?" Raph wondered, taking a sip from his coffee.

"He was way stronger than we were. More skilled and he knew all of our movements. He was confident he would defeat us in case he didn't get what he want." Leo let out a sigh as he gave Mike another spoonful of cereal.

"The other Mike told me he was a human before he got mutated. A martial artist. He probably learned all the moves that our father has taught us. We were trying to fight a true master of ninjutsu..."

There were a few beats of silence before Donnie cleared his throat.

"Speaking of dad... is he up yet?"

Leo shook his head. "No, he wasn't in the dojo and the tea-kettle was cold when I came in..." He grabbed the empty cereal bowl and put it in the sink. Then he poured a cup of tea before turning around.

"Maybe he's meditating in his room. I should bring him some tea..."

Yet he didn't move. He had killed a version of him, after all.

"I'm coming with..." Mikey offered, getting up. His skin still crawled when he thought about the other rat. He knew the only way to get this fear and disgust was to confront the subject head on. They couldn't avoid their own father forever.

Leonardo seemed very grateful, putting an arm around his younger brother's shoulder as they made their way to Splinter's room. Mikey subtly nuzzled Leo's shoulder. The older turtle took deep breath and smiled at Mikey before carefully opening the door.

"Sensei? We brought you some tea..." It was still dark inside the room. Feeling dread knot his stomach again, Mikey hurried to hit the light-switch with his elbows.

"S-Sensei?" Leo put the cup of tea on the nightstand and sat on the edge of Splinter's bed. The small rat's eyes were closed, and he didn't react to his son shaking his shoulder. "No..." Leo gasped, stumbling back to Mikey and the door.

"Donnie!" he shouted, unable to keep his voice from shaking. He panted as he grabbed Mikey's shoulders, guiding him outside the room.

Mikey's eyes were wide, already filling with tears as he processed what was going on. It took only seconds for Raph to appear with Donnie in his arms.

"What? What is it?!" Panic filled the middle brothers' chests at the sight of their mates breaking down again. Don's eyes swiveled through the open door to the bed. He nudged Raph to carry him there, heart pounding.

He made quick work of checking their father over, tears running down his cheeks as he did so. There was no doubt.

"He's dead..." he choked out, pulling the blanket over the still form. He started to sob when Raph wrapped his arms around him.

"I... I think it was a heart attack..."


End file.
